Explosion of pressure vessel, piping, or tire · Fractures
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY, Hogan Biological Services Bldg, Room 300A Mechanical Room, EVANSTON, ILLINOIS 60208
on — Fractures, affecting the hand(s), unspecified.
Final narrative
An employee was servicing a chilled water line by cleaning the line with hydrogen peroxide. There was a combustible reaction and the pressure blew the lid off the stream filter housing unit. The lid struck the employee on the right hand that was being used to protect his face, causing multiple hand fractures requiring surgery. Minor burns were also incurred on the right hand/arm.
HospitalizedHand(s), unspecifiedCooling and humidifying machinery and appliances, n.e.c.
An employee was pulling a wheeled signage cart that was 18-feet wide and 6-feet tall. The employee fell backward and grabbed the cart. The cart then fell on the employee causing a laceration to the back of head, two fractured ribs, and three fractured vertebrae.
Six employees were walking on a sidewalk between buildings on campus during inclement weather when a tree fell. One employee was hospitalized after she was struck by the tree branches, causing her to fall and a branch fell on her legs. She sustained multiple fractures (skull, neck, spine, shoulder, and ribs) and a subdural hematoma. Two other employees were treated at the hospital and released.
A graduate student was performing an experiment under a fume hood. Fumes from the acetone and the ether the student was using ignited and the employee suffered second-degree burns to the torso and hands.
An employee was sitting on the dock when a coworker started an RTV, which then moved forward and crushed her leg between the RTV and the dock. She was hospitalized with a leg fracture.
An employee was using an air compressor on a multi-wheel tire when the flange and the tire burst, causing the wheel's lock ring to strike the employee in the face. He sustained a laceration and facial fractures.
An employee was changing the connection to a compressed nitrogen tank when the system failed and exploded. One employee suffered a concussion and was hospitalized. The other employee sustained soft tissue injuries that did not require hospitalization.
An employee was putting air in a tire that was mounted on a customer's vehicle when the tire exploded, resulting in a left arm fracture that required hospitalization.
On October 24, 2023, at 12:00 PM, an employee was visually checking a gauge on the "U" controller when a pressure tank exploded. The employee was hospitalized with multiple facial fractures and required surgery.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 611310)
An employee was removing boxes of filters from a skid when he tripped on a manual pallet jack. The employee fell and struck his back on the base of the pallet jack, resulting in hospitalization with fractured ribs.
An employee was walking through a parking garage. She tripped over a curb and fell forward onto her right knee, then her left knee, both hands, and her face. She suffered an injury to the left knee that required surgery, as well as scrapes on the chin and both palms and soreness in the left wrist.
An employee was using a hose to clear storm drains after a sewer backup. The employee fell backward and his head struck the curb, resulting in an Injury on the right side of his head, generalized bruising, and pain in his left ankle, right hip, left shoulder, and neck. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was working on an exhaust fan on the roof when he tripped on a wire and fell to the ground. The employee sustained scrapes on his elbow, and a fractured right knee with a torn ACL. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was replacing the back bracket on a deep fryer when her screwdriver slipped, causing her to fall forward into hot oil. She suffered burns on both arms up to the elbows (including the hands and fingers), as well as on the face and neck. She was hospitalized.
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.