Direct exposure to electricity, greater than 220 volts · Electrical burns, unspecified
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at ComEd, 11113 S. Vernon Ave., CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 60628
on — Electrical burns, unspecified, affecting the hand(s) and finger(s).
Final narrative
An employee suffered electrical burns to both hands and fingers while removing the alpha-phase tap from the bushing of a recloser.
HospitalizedHand(s) and finger(s)Switchboards, switches, fuses
An employee was cutting a service line from a transformer pole to a residence's pole. He was working from a ladder secured to the pole. When the wire was cut, the release of tension caused the pole to split at ground level. The employee was strapped to the pole and fell approximately 20-25 feet to the ground. The employee suffered a brain bleed, concussion, and fractures to an orbital bone and wrist.
On December 18, 2018, a temporary employee was spotting equipment being loaded onto a trailer, when a wooden plank fell from the trailer and broke the employee's leg.
Two employees were installing a new arm on a 200 foot power pole in a 295-foot aerial lift. The lift shifted and the employees fell out of the basket. The employees were using fall protection and suffered traumatic injuries from the fall protection equipment.
While installing overhead electrical lines, an employee received an induced electrical surge, suffering electrical burns on the hands. The employee was hospitalized overnight.
An employee was preparing to add a stiffener to a cross-brace and was loosening a nut on a bolt of the cross-brace. After the nut was removed from the bolt, the cross-brace moved and the employee's fall protection slid off the cross-brace. He fell approximately 45.6 feet to the ground, breaking his ribs, collarbone, and pelvis.
An employee was installing a ground wire to a power transmission pole. The ground wire contacted an energized portion of a cut-out, causing an arc-flash. The employee was hospitalized with second degree burns to their chest and arms.
An employee was connecting a utility transformer for underground service to a home. The employee's impact drill went across two connection bars with 240 volts of potential, creating an arc flash. The employee sustained burns to the face and eyes due to the arc flash and molten aluminum.
On December 15, 2023, at 9:15 AM, an employee was changing 60-amp fuses in a 480-volt panel when an arc flash occurred. The employee was hospitalized with burns to both hands.
An employee was performing troubleshooting and maintenance on one of the generators that feed the RF line for glue-laminated timber (glulam) beam production. He was reattaching the outer panel of the generator. A circuit was completed and the employee was electrocuted by the generator and sustained burns. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was utilizing a utility task vehicle (UTV) to patrol a 138 kV transmission line in a right-of-way. The UTV drove into a washout hole that was approximately 6 feet deep and obstructed by vegetation. The employee sustained a dislocated shoulder, a fractured left humerus, back pain, and a strained ankle. He was hospitalized.
A crew of employees were working to replace a utility pole that was broken by a motor vehicle accident. As the crew was removing equipment from the broken pole, part of the pole broke, fell on the injured employee, and rolled over him. The employee sustained two broken shoulders, multiple broken ribs, and a damaged lung that required hospitalization and surgery.
An Ameren lineman was making secondary voltage connections in a pad-mounted residential feed transformer. The lineman contacted an energized lead bushing, sustained an electrical shock, and 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.