Caught in running equipment or machinery during maintenance, cleaning · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Ardent Mills, LLC, 145 West Broadway, ALTON, ILLINOIS 62002
on — Amputations, affecting the finger(s), fingernail(s), n.e.c..
Final narrative
On 07/18/2016, at approximately 11:30 a.m., an employee was operating a flour mill, a machine that consists of a hopper that goes into an airlock. The airlock moves air with a squirrel cage type system. The hopper became clogged, so the employee unbolted and removed a plate to try and clear the clog. The employee's right hand then hit the squirrel cage's assembly, amputating the middle finger at the first knuckle.
AmputationFinger(s), fingernail(s), n.e.c.Food and beverage processing machinery-specialized, n.e.c.
An employee was in the beginning stage of loading a bulk railcar. They were attaching the loading hose to the loading hatch. As they aligned the loading hose to the hatch, their ring finger was pinched in the connection point. The fingertip was amputated, but was later reattached.
An employee was replacing a belt on a fan motor. After the new belt was installed the employee was pulling on the belt from the topside to ensure it was aligned. The glove on his opposite hand got caught and was pulled in between the belt and pulley. He sustained a crush injury with a fracture to the distal fingertip. The injury required a medical amputation of the little finger.
An employee was loading a bulk flour trailer. A loading cap came off the trailer under pressure and struck the employee in the face resulting in facial lacerations, a nose fracture, and broken teeth.
An employee was working on a rail car opener when the employee's safety vest became entangled on the rotating shaft pulling the employee in and breaking bones. The employee also lost consciousness.
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 311211)
An employee was walking into the motor control center (MCC) room when his right ring finger was caught in the hinge of a doorway. He sustained an open phalanx fracture, which resulted in a partial amputation above the first knuckle.
An employee was checking a flour roll stand for a blockage. The employee's right hand was caught in an ingoing nip point on the machine, causing partial amputations to the thumb and middle, ring, and little fingers.
An employee was climbing an A-frame ladder to adjust an exhaust pipe on the wall to let the heat out. The employee fell 4-5 feet and injured his right tibia and ankle.
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.