Graham Bannister, GB Potatoes Development Manager, Shares Near-Fatal Accident to Stress Emergency Preparedness

Graham Bannister, Development Manager at GB Potatoes and a veteran of over 40 years in the farming industry, is sharing a personal near-fatal experience to raise awareness about emergency preparedness, particularly for lone workers in rural and isolated areas.

Bannister, who has dedicated his life to farming—especially within the potato sector—recently moved into his dream property located in a remote area of Bilsdale, North Yorkshire. Surrounded by natural beauty but entirely cut off from mobile networks, he had just installed Starlink satellite broadband to support his work.

While outside attempting to connect to the satellite signal, Bannister slipped and fell into a large, woody shrub. He had been impaled by the shrub and was unable to move.

Graham Bannister, Development Manager at GB Potatoes:

"Normally I would bounce back up with some colorful language. But this time was different."

Alone, without mobile signal and with no one aware of his location, Bannister was in a life-threatening situation. Drawing on lessons from TV shows like Yellowstone, he knew not to remove the object himself. However, without any way to contact emergency services directly from the accident site, his situation grew more dire.

Eventually, with significant effort and pain, he managed to free himself and make his way to the house. Once inside, he used the Starlink internet connection to make a Wi-Fi call to emergency services. Yet even then, locating him proved difficult.

Graham Bannister:

"Thank goodness I wasn’t bleeding badly."

That’s when he remembered the What3words app on his phone, which provides exact geographic locations using three unique words. Bannister shared his coordinates with the emergency operator, who stayed on the line until the North Yorkshire Air Ambulance arrived—just 21 minutes later. The team decided a road ambulance was the safer option, and he was taken to hospital where he underwent surgery.

Graham Bannister:

"I'm a very lucky man. And I’m very aware that without Starlink and What3words, I might not be here to tell this story."

He also highlighted a growing concern in rural communities—insufficient mobile coverage.

Graham Bannister:

"I can see the Bilsdale transmitter mast from my property, but ever since it burned down three or four years ago, mobile coverage hasn’t returned. I hope it doesn’t take a fatal accident to convince authorities of the need for proper communication infrastructure in remote areas."

Bannister now encourages all rural and lone workers to familiarise themselves with available emergency tools.

Graham Bannister:

"I didn’t even know my iPhone could make emergency calls via satellite. Do you and your team know how to use that feature?"

His message is clear: accidents can and do happen—often without warning. Knowing how to respond and having access to the right tools can mean the difference between life and death.