Struck by dislodged flying object, particle · Fractures
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Weyerhaeuser Manufacturing, 234 Industrial Avenue, NATCHITOCHES, LOUISIANA 71457
on — Fractures, affecting the finger(s), fingernail(s), unspecified.
Final narrative
An employee was attempting to align belts on the sort gate assembly machine so that the machine could run smoother. The machine's air pressure was not disengaged at the time. The pressurized machine knocked out the pin that holds the belts in line and hit the employee's hand, breaking the left index finger. The employee was hospitalized for surgery.
HospitalizedFinger(s), fingernail(s), unspecifiedMachine and appliance parts, n.e.c.
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 321212)
An employee was working to dislodge a piece of stray veneer from a conveyor. The employee set up a ladder against the machine and climbed the ladder. He placed his left hand on the rail of the conveyor and his fingers were caught in the chain and sprocket assembly that powers the conveyor. Three fingers were amputated. The machine was guarded at the time.
A maintenance employee was changing a shaft on a piece of equipment that had been isolated for repair. While positioning the shaft into place, the shaft fell approximately two feet and pinched the employee's left index finger. The employee suffered a partial amputation of the fingertip without bone loss.
An employee was using a cart to move saw blades. The cart tipped over, striking and pinning the employee under the blades. The employee sustained severe lacerations to their torso and legs that required surgery.
An employee was labeling and writing on the back of a slab of quartz. The material was leaned toward him when the A-frame it was resting on shifted, causing the material to fall onto his right leg and break it.
An employee performed maintenance on various machines when they began to feel hot and unwell, and they experienced cramping. The employee was hospitalized with heat stress or dehydration.
A driver was exiting his vehicle outside the plant gate when his foot slipped on the top step of the truck. He fell to the ground, landed on his left hip and elbow. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured hip/femur.
A security employee was responding to an urgent call from staff regarding a violent patient. The employee tripped and fell on the floor outside of the stairwell. The employee sustained a closed head injury, contusion of the cerebrum without loss of consciousness, and a closed fracture of the distal end of the right radius.
A temporary employee was testing an electrical starter motor. He was placing tape on the starter while the breaker was not engaged, but the starter sent an arc flash that burned his hands and stomach.
An employee was walking on a sidewalk and stubbed his toe on an elevated portion of concrete, causing him to trip and fall. The employee's right knee was dislocated.