Farmers across Pembrokeshire are being urged to subscribe to a free health and safety e-mail bulletin following the release of figures showing that the number of people killed on farms has nearly doubled.

Nationwide statistics show that 38 people were killed between April 1st and December 31st 2004, compared to 21 for the same period of 2003/04.

Since 1996, eight people have died on Pembrokeshire farms and 56 have been seriously injured.

The Health and Safety Executive is hopeful that the new e-mail service will improve safety.

The bulletin is aimed at farmers, farm managers and landowners and will be issued free to subscribers every three months, giving brief information on topical issues with links to more detailed articles on the HSE website.

Chris Molde, from HSE's agriculture and food sector, said: "More and more farmers are accessing the internet. We have launched the agriculture e-bulletin as it's an effective means of communicating information quickly.

"As well as informing those in agriculture about current health and safety issues, we'll also use the e-bulletin to remind farmers about seasonal safety issues, such as precautions to take when crop spraying or harvesting."

The first e-bulletin was issued in April when some of the topics covered included new regulations on working at height and the use of dust masks.

To subscribe to the bulletin, visit the HSE website at www.hse.gov.uk/agriculture/ebulletins