Caught in or compressed by equipment or objects, unspecified · Soreness, pain, hurt-nonspecified injury
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Mohawk Industries, Inc., 180 Church Street, TORRINGTON, CONNECTICUT 06790
on — Soreness, pain, hurt-nonspecified injury, affecting the hand(s), unspecified.
Final narrative
An employee's hand was caught and injured in a laminating machine, requiring hospitalization.
HospitalizedHand(s), unspecifiedSpecial process machinery, n.e.c.
On July 31, 2025, two employees were walking near a friction wash tank when a rubber gasket on top of the tank blew. Hot water mixed with 50% caustic chemical sprayed out and rained down on the employees. Both employees were brought to an emergency shower and were neutralized with vinegar. One employee was hospitalized with chemical and thermal burns to their upper back and eyes.
On December 29, 2024, at 1:30 PM, an employee was using a safety knife to move an object from the conveyor when it became stuck in a pinch point between two rolls of an extrusion machine. The employee's right hand was pulled into the machine, resulting in amputation of the hand.
On December 20, 2024, an employee was preparing to remove the access panel for the rotary valve gear box underneath a washer in polymerization. When he began loosening the bolts from the rotary lock cover, hot water and steam pressure released and caused second-degree burns to the employees stomach, both thighs, and the left calf area.
An employee was operating a press when the timing belt came loose. The machine was turned off. As the employee began to adjust the belt, the pulley on the table moved and his right middle finger was caught between the belt and pulley and amputated.
An employee was changing mud cups in the hopper cylinders of a concrete pump truck. The cylinders moved and three of the employees fingers were amputated.
An employee was standing on the rig floor next to a polishing unit. His hand was placed on the polishing unit when the pump was lowered, resulting in amputation of their right thumb, ring, and middle fingertips.
An employee was using air to blow out the air wash to the blender and grinder station. As the employee reached to verify that the air wash was clean, the unit pinched and amputated their fingertip.
An employee was retrieving a lost drill pipe with a lifting bail when their left thumb got pinched between the table and handle of the lifting bail while trying to re-thread the pipe to lift it out. The employee suffered an amputation to the left thumb.
An employee was removing a core chuck from a stationary roll when their right ring finger was pinched between the chuck and the roll. The employee's fingertip was amputated.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 314129)
An employee was using the roll buffer machine to buff cots at the yarn plant. They were using an air hose to blow off the cots and suffered partial amputations to their left index and middle fingers from the buffing wheel.
An employee was performing maintenance and removing fibers from a chain and sprocket. Slight pressure on the chain caused the sprocket shaft to spin freely. The employee's right hand was caught in the chain and sprocket, partially amputating their ring finger.
An employee was operating a pillow blower when it became jammed. Upon removing the fiber jam, the employee became caught in the picker and sustained multiple fractures to the right arm.
An employee was repairing a yarn break. A filament of yarn waste from a package wrapped around the employee's thumb and a nearby, rotating, pre-tensioning shaft. Due to the strength of the filament yarn, the employee's right thumb was partially amputated.
An employee was checking on a machine outside of the building and removed a cover to clean out a blocked area. His hand was caught by a rotary valve in a dust collection machine. The employee's fingertip was amputated.
An employee was working to clean a glue roller with a scraper tool. The tool and the employee's left thumb were pinched between two rollers, resulting in a partial amputation.
An employee was re-arranging boxes of pipe insulation on a pallet. One of the boxes fell from the pallet and knocked over an upright empty cylinder. The cylinder fell and crushed the tip of the employee's right toe. The employee's toe required surgical amputation.
An employee was securing the claw of a grapple truck to the truck bed. His left little finger was caught between the tie down strap and the rub rail of the truck, resulting in partial amputation of the finger.
An employee was cutting extruded aluminum framing material using a horizontal band saw. She went to grab a rag in the machine when the rag contacted the blade and pulled her hand in toward the blade, resulting in a partial amputation of the right index finger.