Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Universal Plant Services, Interstate 55, CHANNAHON, ILLINOIS 60410
on — Soreness, pain, hurt-nonspecified injury, affecting the face, unspecified.
Final narrative
An employee was operating a portable grinder with a cup tool attachment to bevel the edge of a piece of pipe. The cup tool disintegrated and debris from the cup tool struck the left side of the employee's face. The employee was transported to hospital.
An employee was cleaning inside a 13.8kV cabinet when an arc flash occurred. The employee sustained third-degree burns to the left hand and thigh. The employee also fell backward from a step stool and sustained a laceration to the back of their head.
On April 3, 2020, an employee was placing caution tape around a crane lifting area when the crane extended the outriggers, one of which landed on the employee's right foot. As a result, he sustained three toe amputations.
An employee was tossing a damaged toilet into a compactor. The toilet bounced off the compactor and lacerated the employee's right wrist, cutting an artery and tendon.
An employee was operating a hydraulic jack to bend a frame when the jack came loose and struck the employee. They were hospitalized for a spleen injury.
A truck had been towed into the shop with a flat tire and a blown airbag. An employee checked the tire for damage and was airing the tire. The employee was installing the valve core when the bead slipped off the rim. Air escaped, and the aluminum wheel struck the employee's head and face. The employee became unresponsive and was bleeding.
On December 14, 2023, at 8:40 p.m., three employees were inspecting milling machines for startup. A few of the sleeves on the mill drum needed to be changed out. The injured employee was trying to input a sleeve on the mill drum using a hammer. The hammer hit the edge of the drum, which caused a metal piece to splinter off and strike the employee's cheek just below the left eye. The metal splinter embedded in the back of their eye socket, resulting in pain, swelling, and bleeding that required hospitalization.
An employee was pushing a line of carts into a vestibule when the door cable snapped and struck his right ankle. The employee suffered a fracture that required surgery and hospitalization.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 238290)
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.
An employee was assisting with cutting a vertical steel pile. A 16-foot by 9-inch section of pile dropped to the side and bounced off a previously cut pile and toward the employee. The employee was struck in the torso and leg, causing his knee to dislocate from his femur. The employee was hospitalized.
On July 30, 2025, an employee was utilizing a circular saw to cut plastic into strips that would be used as shims. The blade of the saw amputated his left little finger to the second knuckle.
An employee was working on the ingot loader of a aluminum processing machine and noticed a pin was not installed. The employee reached to retrieve the pin and the machine activated for a functions test. The machine closed on the employee's hand, resulting in a hand injury requiring hospitalization.
An employee was changing a die in a press when the die slipped and crushed the employee's left index finger. The employee sustained an open facture of the tuft of the left distal phalanx and a partial amputation.
An employee was driving a boom lift (in the lowered position) in an exterior dock area. The lift s left wheels rolled onto base plates that covered a 3-foot-deep sump pit. The base plates failed, and one side of the lift dropped. The employee's left leg was caught under the lift basket, and he suffered a fracture to the lower leg including the ankle.