Direct exposure to electricity, greater than 220 volts · Electrical burns, unspecified
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at MDR CONSTRUCTION, INC., 5 th Street, COLUMBUS, MISSISSIPPI 39701
on — Electrical burns, unspecified, affecting the face, unspecified.
Final narrative
A utility line construction crew was in the process of replacing a wooden utility pole with a new metal utility pole and metal cross arm. After the new metal pole and cross arm was installed the crew wrapped an insulated blanket around the pole above the cross arm. Insulators were installed on the cross arm. A crew member was in a lift bucket and was using metal quick ties to connect the power lines to the cross arm insulators. The crew member tied one of the quick ties to an insulator and was preparing to tie one of the power lines to the insulator. The free end of the quick tie slipped out of the crew member's hand and curled underneath the insulated blanket contacting the power line. The power line arced and burned the crew member's face.
Employees were working to unload a power line pole from a pole trailer and place it on the pole rack on the digger derrick truck. The injured employee hooked up pole tongs that were attached to the boom rope of the digger derrick to one of the poles on the trailer. As the digger derrick picked up the pole, it slipped out of the tongs and landed on the leg/ankle of the injured employee resulting in a broken left leg and ankle.
An employee was picking up an outrigger pad when his right arm became caught between the moving outrigger and the outrigger housing. The employee sustained swelling in his lower right arm. He was hospitalized.
A lineman was on a power pole holding a jumper wire. The wire contacted an energized primary line; the resulting arc flash caused first-degree burns to the lineman's face and second-degree burns to the lineman's right arm.
An employee was constructing a new electrical distribution line. While connecting a neutral line near an energized primary phase, the employee's face contacted the energized phase resulting in burns to his face and arm. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was installing a ground wire to a power transmission pole. The ground wire contacted an energized portion of a cut-out, causing an arc-flash. The employee was hospitalized with second degree burns to their chest and arms.
An employee was connecting a utility transformer for underground service to a home. The employee's impact drill went across two connection bars with 240 volts of potential, creating an arc flash. The employee sustained burns to the face and eyes due to the arc flash and molten aluminum.
On December 15, 2023, at 9:15 AM, an employee was changing 60-amp fuses in a 480-volt panel when an arc flash occurred. The employee was hospitalized with burns to both hands.
An employee was terminating cables in a junction box. A loose ground wire came into contact with the bushing, causing a flash that burned the right side of the employee's face and his right hand.
An employee was using a bucket truck hoist to raise secondary aerial wiring. The wire made contact with the primary wire, causing an arc flash. The employee suffered burns to both hands and was hospitalized.
An employee was terminating conductors to buss bars inside the secondary compartment of a single-phase transformer. An arc flash occurred, causing burns to the soft tissue of the employee's face.
An employee was securing the claw of a grapple truck to the truck bed. His left little finger was caught between the tie down strap and the rub rail of the truck, resulting in partial amputation of the finger.
An employee was checking a pole-type transformer tank for leaks. A hydraulic clamping device was lowered onto his right thumb and crushed it against the sharp edge of the bottom of the tank. He suffered a partial transphalangeal amputation to the thumb.
The injured employee was standing behind a table. She jumped out to scare another employee, but tripped and fell on the tile floor, injuring her right ankle/foot. She was hospitalized with a dislocated ankle that required surgery.
An employee was going into a trailer to mark product for shipment and the trailer pulled away from the dock. The employee fell out of the trailer, contacted the dock plate, and then fell to the ground. The employee was hospitalized with a punctured lung, fractured ribs, and contusions.
An employee was hooking up bundled tie-downs with a chain. While he was holding a hook, the other hook was unlocked. This caused the employee's hook to slide down and pinch his right index finger between the chain and the shackle. He suffered an amputation to the fingertip (without bone loss), as well as an open fracture.
An employee was operating a gas tugger to lift metal sheeting. His left hand was pulled into the pulley, which crushed his left thumb, resulting in avulsions and other tissue damage. He was hospitalized and required surgery.