Mindak Farmer's Cooperative

An employee was trying to clear a blocked floor drain using an air hose. He attempted to pressurize the drain and hot water splashed onto his face, arms, and chest, causing second degree burns to 10 percent of his body.

On December 26, 2023, an employee went out to the parking lot to troubleshoot the starter of an SUV. The employee was underneath the vehicle when it started and moved and the employee's middle back area was caught under the front passenger-side tire. The employee sustained a fractured collar bone.

An employee was parking at a patient's home and exited the van to manually open the garage door. The van began rolling backward and rolled over the employee's right leg. She was hospitalized with a fractured leg.

A driver exited their truck so they could provide service for a customer when the truck began to roll away. The driver went to re-enter the truck but fell and was struck by the rear driver-side tire. The employee sustained fractures to their leg and foot.

An employee had been operating a yard tractor. He parked the vehicle and was exiting when the vehicle began to roll, causing him to fall. The employee's hand was then run over by the yard tractor, resulting in fractures to multiple fingers. The employee was hospitalized.

An employee was checking for a leak in the air brake system of a semi-truck. The employee had removed the brake chamber when the truck rolled back. One of the tires pinned the employee's right hip against the ground.

An employee was helping change out socks on hard thin juice filters, part of a beet sugar manufacturing operation. While the filter lid was being removed, juice started leaking down the side of the filter. This suggested that the juice was bypassing the seat on the main shutoff valve. While the main shutoff was being checked, the valve was opened and sprayed hot juice on the employee. The employee suffered burns to the left arm, the left ribcage area, the left side of the back, and the left side of the face. The employee was hospitalized.

An employee was removing a beet elevating belt while mechanics were cutting a hole in the center of the belt to install the pulley point using an oscillating tool with a hook blade. The tool popped out of the belt and the tool struck the injured employee in the stomach, resulting in a laceration on the lower left abdomen.

An employee was performing maintenance on a lime kiln sump pump when they sustained second- and third-degree chemical and thermal burns.

An employee was troubleshooting the precoat/overflow tank when scalding liquid (juice) began to leak out of the tank and contacted the employee. The employee was hospitalized for burns.

An employee was clearing a jam in the bag sealer machine in the warehouse when his right thumb was caught in the belt and pulley, resulting in amputation of the thumb tip.

An employee fell from a dock to ground level (less than 4 feet) and broke their tibia/knee.

An employee was on the ground working to close a trailer door. The door was caught by the wind and blew the employee backward. He landed on his back and sustained four fractured ribs, requiring hospitalization.

An employee was walking on top of boiler to close a valve. The employee fell off the boiler and landed on the floor, sustaining fractured ribs. The employee was hospitalized.

An employee was exiting a loader and coming down the ladder. His hand slipped off the railing and he fell backward onto sandy ground, landing on his side. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured pelvis and a rotator cuff tear.

An employee's left bicep was lacerated by high-pressure water during water blasting operations. The employee was hospitalized.