Caught in running equipment or machinery during maintenance, cleaning · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Plastipak Packaging, Inc., 3310 W Springfield Ave, CHAMPAIGN, ILLINOIS 61822
on — Amputations, affecting the finger(s), fingernail(s), n.e.c..
Final narrative
An employee was attempting to clear a jam/bridge in the extruder by pushing trimmings from plastic bottles into the feed throat of the extruder. His left hand contacted the screw of the extruder, amputating his index and middle fingers below the first knuckle.
On July 31, 2024, two employees were working to raise a base mold into its position on a blow molding machine. The injured employee lifted up on the base mold with his right hand and was holding the support when a second employee used a metal bar to lift the base into its fully-raised position. The injured employee's fingers were caught between the base support and the mold-holding unit resulting in the amputation of their right ring fingertip.
An employee was troubleshooting a loose chain on a conveyor belt when their left index finger was pulled into a sprocket and the fingertip was amputated.
On September 8, 2022, an employee was installing the top rail on a guardrail system. The employee's right index finger was pinched between the guardrail and a post, resulting in a fingertip amputation.
On June 14, 2022, an employee was adjusting the height of the work table on the box strapper. The employee loosened the bolts on the carriage and had their left hand resting in the area beneath the unit. The table dropped, resulting in distal tip amputations to their middle and ring fingers.
An employee was doing maintenance work in a tunnel under a production line. The employee fell approximately 9 feet through an open manhole, landed on the concrete level below, and suffered neck and back injuries.
Two employees were repairing the hydraulic engagement pins on a rented front-end wheel loader. The machine controls were activated to move the attachment pins and an employee's finger was caught between the pins and the bushings. Their right index finger was partially amputated.
An employee was cleaning the conveyor on a piece of equipment when they slipped and their right hand was pulled into the chain sprocket. The employee's fifth fingertip was amputated.
An employee was throwing blankets onto a blanket folding and stacking machine. A blanket got stuck in the machine and she attempted to remove it when the machine contacted her right little finger, resulting in a fingertip amputation.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 561910)
An employee was walking behind the rewind coding machine while on his phone. He rested his left wrist on top of the slitter bar and his finger came in contact with the roller, resulting in amputation.
The injured employee was assisting the bander operator with dressing units with dunnage. A unit became stuck on the conveyor. The injured employee was pushing the unit on the conveyor when a conveyor roller pulled his shoe in-between the rollers. The employee sustained crushing injuries to their left foot/toes.
An employee was inspecting and adjusting a tray in a thermoforming machine when the the trigger switch was touched, causing the machine door to close on their right hand. The employee sustained crushing injuries to the hand.
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.