Salt Creek community mourns death of farmer Mark Scobie following silo tragedy

A Salt Creek farmer who was planning his retirement when he was killed in a silo incident has been identified.

Mark and Lindy Scobie spent decades living and working on their beef cattle farm in Salt Creek and were planning their dream retirement when tragedy struck.

The couple were planning to put their farm up for sale and go travelling before Mr Scobie became trapped in a silo, friends and family told The Advertiser.

The 63-year-old father of two has now been identified as the Salt Creek man who died in what his 27-year-old daughter Kendal has described as “a tragic freak accident” that left her family reeling.

Mark Scobie has been identified as the man who died in a Salt Creek silo. Picture: Zoe Phillips

“He was the backbone of our family,” she said.

“We’ve lost a really big part of our family but between the three of us we are getting through it and moving forward as best we can.”

Close friend of the family and CFS Salt Creek captain Adam Merry said the couple were planning to put the farm on the market and go travelling.

“It’s all changed in five minutes,” he said.

“[They were going to] enjoy life going forward and not leave it too late like most of us farmers do.

“They were really looking forward to it.”

Mr Merry said Mr Scobie was emptying the silo to sell the lupin in preparation for the sale when some of the grain became lodged inside.

He said Mr Scobie climbed in to free up the grain when he was pulled under.

Emergency crews, including the Country Fire Services, were called to the Princes Hwy property at around 4.15pm after reports that a man was trapped in a silo.

When Mr Merry received the call, he acted swiftly, calling all neighbours in the close proximity to come with angle grinders “as quickly as possible to cut holes in the silo”.

“We cut all the holes in the silo and released all the grain and then got him out the manhole at the bottom,” he said.

He said they were able to free Mr Scobie in around 15 minutes but could not save him.

“[It’s] a pretty quick response time but that’s obviously a long time if you’re not breathing,” he said.

Mr Scobie’s death has devastated the local community, with family and friends remembering the 63-year-old as a “lovable character” who was always ready to help.

“It’s a big loss in the community, no doubt about that,” Mr Merry said.

He described Mr Scobie as an active volunteer in the community who was “kind to everyone”.

“[He was] just a big, lovable character, that wouldn’t hurt a fly.

The father of two was a CFS volunteer, a Meningie governing council member and on the Meningie Hospital board.

Kendal said her parents were also passionate about improving the soil conditions at the farm, including through plantations of native trees and rainwater harvesting,

“They were very set on leaving this ... place a better place than they when they found it,” she said

Kendal said she was thankful to the community that has rallied around the family in the wake of her father’s death.

Mr Scobie leaves behind his two children, Mitchell and Kendal and wife Lindy.

Originally published as Salt Creek community mourns death of farmer Mark Scobie following silo tragedy