QUAD bike safety will be the focus of National Farm Safety Week, with WorkSafe calling on central Victorian farmers to take extra care after four deaths on farms this year.WorkSafe statistics show that of the four people killed on Victorian farms this year, two died in quad bike crashes.The other two deaths were caused by a tractor roll-over in Tallandoon, near Wangaratta and a cow crushing a farm worker in South Gippsland.But WorkSafe spokesman Michael Birt said a major cause for concern were the 500 injuries suffered in farm accidents each year.He cited the example of a Cornella farmer, 52, who suffered pelvic and hip injuries in a tractor accident last week.Mr Birt praised the farmer for carrying a mobile phone, which was used to alert emergency services.The man was taken by air ambulance to The Alfred hospital in Melbourne.Mr Birt said farms represented a high percentage of workplace deaths in Victoria, with seven of the 23 workplace deaths in 2010 happening in the agricultural sector.He urged farmers, their families and neighbours to check farms for safety issues.National Farm Safety Week, which started yesterday, aims to raise awareness of farm safety issues in rural communities, and this year focuses on quad bike safety.There have been 140 quad bike-related deaths in Australia in the past 10 years, with 12 incidents in the first half of 2011.The Victorian Farmers Federation has welcomed new FarmSafe Alliance manager Tim McKenzie, who has been appointed to help Victorian farmers to maintain safe working environments on their properties.VFF president Andrew Broad urged farmers to take a good look at how they operated their businesses.He said a new FarmSafe Alliance initiative would play a key part in informing and educating rural communities about health and safety issues on farms. “Tim enters the role at a time when the number of workplace accidents on farms continues to rise at an alarming rate,’’ Mr Broad said.“Farmers cannot afford to remain complacent when it comes to farm safety. ‘‘Too many farmers are falling victim to workplace accidents and it is up to us, as responsible farmers and businessmen and women, to ensure our farms are kept in safe working condition.’’