Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Tech Ord, 47600 180th Street, CLEAR LAKE, SOUTH DAKOTA 57226
on — Fractures, affecting the ankle(s).
Final narrative
An employee slipped on the ice while walking from their vehicle to the production buildings, fracturing the right ankle.
An employee was working in the forest flagging an area to be harvested. He took a step and his foot slipped on a stick hidden under the leaves, causing him to fall to the ground. He landed on his right foot/lower leg resulting in a fractured tibia.
An employee was inspecting an apartment to ensure it was ready for a new resident to move in. The carpet in the apartment had been recently cleaned and was still wet. As the employee went from the carpet to the tiled floor of the bathroom, they slipped and fell, resulting in a torn left hamstring.
An employee was delivering a letter along a rural carrier route when she stepped on an ice-covered snow drift, slipped, and fell to the ground. The employee sustained a right hip fracture that required surgery.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 325920)
An employee was working on a burner unit and turning the controls for a fan motor on an incinerator unit when incendiary test material ignited, causing second-degree burns to his head, back, and left arm requiring hospitalization.
An employee was making a fine adjustment after a tooling change on a pyrotechnic pellet press when the machine interface was actuated. The bottom piston on the press crushed his left hand, resulting in fractures to his index, middle, and ring fingers with tendon damage to the middle finger. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.
An employee was testing a 40mm single-shot tactical launcher with the launcher mounted on her right shoulder and the barrel stabilized with her left hand. After the trigger was pulled, the 40mm barrel tore apart radially and she sustained injuries to her left extremity including the bicep, forearm, index finger, middle finger, and thumb.
An employee was loading parts into a press machine when the pneumatic/electrical 2" steel door closed on his hand, crushing it. The employee sustained the amputation of the whole hand and was hospitalized.
An employee was moving a tensile strength test device with a dolly. The device fell from the dolly onto the employee's right leg, causing a compound fracture.
An employee was walking past a crossover conveyor when a ramp came down and hit them in the back. The employee sustained a broken back vertebra, as well as a concussion, and was hospitalized.
An employee was using a hook tool to pull a pallet onto the lift gate of a tractor trailer. The hook detached from the underside of the pallet, causing the employee to fall backward off the lift gate. The employee landed on the concrete parking lot about 5 feet below, suffering fractures to the skull and two thoracic vertebrae.
An employee was walking on a truss table when he lost his balance and fell approximately 3 feet to the floor. The employee sustained a dislocated and fractured left ankle.