Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Jim C. Hamer Company, 11474 Spruce River Road, DANVILLE, WEST VIRGINIA 25053
on — Amputations, affecting the finger(s), fingernail(s), unspecified.
Final narrative
On March 9, 2017, at approximately 10:30 a.m., an employee was injured while handling cants from the gang saw to the roof top chain. As a 5 1/2 inch x 7 1/4 inch cant came out of the saw, it fell short of the chain and fell towards the floor. The employee reached for the end of the cant and as the cant raised, the employee's right thumb was caught between the cant and the steel hood of the gang saw resulting in a severe cut behind the nail bed above the knuckle. The employee was transported to the hospital where the employee received stitches. The injury was classified as a partial amputation with the tip of the bone broken, but no nerve damage.
On October 30, 2023, an employee was watching lumber come down from the descrambler when their finger was caught in a sprocket, resulting in a partial amputation.
At about 10:30 a.m. on July 11, 2018, an employee was clearing wood dust from a horizontal belt near the chipper. He was using a piece of wood to knock the dust from the belt; the belt splice caught the piece of wood and pulled his finger into a belt roller. The tip of his right thumb was amputated.
An employee was attempting to clear a jam in a screw conveyor when his arm was pulled into and caught in the conveyor. His arm had to be surgically amputated below the shoulder.
On June 9, 2017, at approximately 8:00 p.m., an employee was servicing a front-end loader. The employee was preparing to change an air filter on the front-end loader when the employee's right hand made contact with the alternator fan, amputating the index, middle, and ring fingertips. The loader was running at the time of the incident.
On April 19, 2017, at approximately 3:20 p.m., an employee was operating the chipper when a slab became hung up in the mouth of the chipper. The employee turned off the vibrating conveyor and gained access to the opposite side of the chipper. He pulled on the slab. When the slab came free, his hand was smashed between the slab and mouth of the chipper, amputating his right ring finger near the first knuckle.
An employee was operating a forklift and unloading a truck. After the truck was unloaded, the employee got off the forklift and proceeded to adjust the dock plate with a hook tool. The dock plate slipped and the employee went to adjust the plate with their hand when their left middle finger got caught. Their finger was amputated above the first joint.
An employee was rotating a carbide granulator blade when his finger was caught between the blade and a stationary part of the machine. The employee's right middle finger was partially amputated and they suffered an avulsion to the right ring fingertip.
An employee was using a CNC metal lathe machine in manual mode to check that the thread blocking tool made contact with the jaws. As the employee was manually spinning the spindle, his index fingertip was crushed between the spindle's jaws and the grooving insert, resulting in a fingertip amputation.
During a material handling operation, an employee's fingertip was caught under an air conditioning unit as the unit was lowered onto a cart. The employee's fingertip was amputated.
An employee was removing a bolt from a tractor hub when their right index finger was caught between the hub and the frame. The employee's fingertip was crushed and the employee was hospitalized.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 321113)
An employee was repairing a photo eye on the infeed roll case when they dropped a tool. The employee went to grab the tool and his fingers contacted the chain and sprocket of the infeed roll case. His fingers were pulled into the pinch point and the fingertips were crushed, resulting in amputation of one fingertip.
An employee was troubleshooting dispersing equipment. A belt and pulley system was energized, and the moving belt caught the employee's right ring finger. He suffered a partial amputation at the first knuckle, below the nail.
An employee was cleaning the photo eye sensors of a piece of equipment between the saw that cuts lumber into lengths and boards. The employee stepped on a metal grate that gave way and fell 8-10 feet. The employee was able to remove himself from the conveyor. His tibia was fractured just below the knee.
While refilling a lubricant tank, an employee observed that a pump was not operating correctly. While troubleshooting the issue, the employee reached toward the back of the pump to check for proper airflow. Their left index finger contacted moving components in the pump's piston mechanism, resulting in partial amputation of the fingertip.
An employee was conducting routine maintenance on a mixer. New lid pins had been installed, and the employee was rotating by hand to ensure they had been installed correctly. The employee's left middle finger was caught between the lid and top of a pin. The momentum from the mixer continued, causing a crushing injury to the finger. The employee underwent a medical amputation from the top knuckle to the tip of the finger.
An employee was climbing down a 15-foot multipurpose ladder. The employee fell about 8 feet, landing on the concrete floor and the ladder itself. The employee suffered several injuries, all on the right side: broken ribs, a broken sternum, a broken temporal bone, broken shoulder, multiple fractures to the cheekbone, and a brain bleed.
An employee was rolling up the landing gear on his trailer when the handle began to unwind and struck his face, fracturing his jaw. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.