Struck by object or equipment rolling freely · Fractures
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at USDA Forest Service, Mountain Rest Fire Station, AUBERRY, CALIFORNIA 93602
on — Fractures, affecting the chest, except internal location of diseases or disorders.
Final narrative
On December 1, 2015, an employee and a coworker had cut down three trees. While they were cutting up the trees that lay on the ground, the employee's chain saw blade got pinched in a tree. The coworker, who was located upslope from the tree, made a cut in it to relieve the pinch pressure on the saw blade. When the cut was completed, the tree rolled down the slope and over the employee. He suffered bruises and abrasions to his face and head, as well as broken ribs.
HospitalizedChest, except internal location of diseases or disordersLogs
Employees were building a water pool for a pump site. Just after being handed a rock to stack, an employee lost his balance and fell forward while holding the rock. His finger was crushed between the rock he was holding and another on the ground, and he suffered an amputation.
An employee was inside a ditch while pull-starting a gas-powered water pump with their left hand. As the employee pulled the handle, their hand was punctured by a stick protruding from the bank of the ditch, resulting in a wound that subsequently became infected and required hospitalization.
An employee slipped and fell while working in steep, rough forest terrain. A sharp stick or other object pierced the employee's clothing and lacerated the employee's abdomen.
An employee was making a pride loop to tie a horse. The horse got aggressive and the loop closed around the employee's left hand amputating the fingertips.
An employee was connecting a dolly to a trailer. The equipment rolled away, causing the employee's left index finger to be crushed between the trailer and the dolly. The employee sustained amputation of the fingertip.
On October 17, 2023, at 9:55 p.m., an employee was working on a ramp while moving merchandise from a cargo loader to a dolly. The employee was putting the locks on the dolly and transferring a unit load device containing packages when she realized the lock was in the down position. As she attempted to fix the lock, the unit load device started moving toward the dolly, and the employee became wedged between the dolly and the device. The employee suffered an injury to her lower left leg.
Two employees were shaking out steel beams and standing them vertically. One beam was hit, causing the other beams to fall. A beam then rolled over an employee's left shin and fractured it. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 115310)
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On September 25, 2025, an employee climbed an aluminum extension ladder and was on top of the roof of a building She was walking around on the roof, inspecting and evaluating it. She was descending the ladder when the ladder slid to the right and twisted around as she hung onto it. She then fell 10-12 feet to the paved parking lot and the ladder landed on top of her. She sustained a fractured left collarbone, multiple other fractures, and had bruising to the left side of her abdomen.
An employee was riding a horse and leading several pack mules along a trail. A few mules started acting up, causing the horse to stir. The employee then fell off the horse and landed on a stiff woody protrusion that impacted her chest/rib area. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured rib and a punctured lung.
An employee was working on a tree thinning unit and was cutting a 6" diameter tree. During the back-cut when the chainsaw kicked back. The saw struck her, resulting in a 3-inch laceration on her left leg below the knee. She was hospitalized and required surgery.
The injured employee was assisting a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) enforcement operation. During an apprehension, officers returned fire at a subject and struck the employee with a bullet. The employee sustained a gunshot wound to their right hand.
The injured employee was assisting in the disassembly phase after a radar array had been lowered and secured. The crew began removing load bearing pins from an overhead crane to free the radome. A load bearing pin was stuck. The injured employee went to remove the pin manually as a second team member applied pressure from the opposite side. The pin unexpectedly released and struck the injured employee s right thumb, resulting in partial amputation of the distal phalanx including an open distal phalanx fracture and nail bed laceration.
At about 3:10 p.m. on October 3, 2025, an employee was inspecting a car. Two dogs that had been in another car were leashed and tethered to a bollard. As the employee inspected the first car along with a narcotics detection dog, one of the other dogs came loose and attacked the narcotics dog. The employee was separating the dogs when the other dog bit his left ring finger. The last joint of the finger was injured and part of it was bitten off.
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