Other fall to lower level 6 to 10 feet · Intracranial injuries and injuries to internal organs
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at H&K Group, Inc., 148 Angstadt Lane, BIRDSBORO, PENNSYLVANIA 19508
on — Intracranial injuries and injuries to internal organs, affecting the head and trunk.
Final narrative
On June 16, 2017, at 1:30 p.m., an employee was performing auxiliary cleanup work between pour runs when he fell 6 feet off a reclaimer, hit a pipe, and then landed on the concrete slab. He suffered a head laceration, concussion with minor loss of consciousness, broken ribs, and a punctured lung, requiring hospitalization.
HospitalizedHead and trunkRoad recyclers, road reclaimers
An employee was using a crowbar to slide a forklift s forks into a new position. The fork popped loose, causing the crowbar to slip out from under the fork. The employee lost their balance and fell to the ground, fracturing their femur.
An employee was running an asphalt rake to set the edge of pavement. The employee developed heat stress symptoms and was hospitalized, suffering from heat exhaustion.
An employee was descending from a catwalk when they missed the step onto the ladder and fell approximately 21 feet to the ground, sustaining a fractured pelvis, a chipped spine, a concussion, and a laceration to the face.
An employee exited their truck to clear ice off the windshield. The employee slipped and fell on ice, resulting in hospitalization for a fractured right femur.
An employee was preparing a tank car for loading while chipping away solidified product in the manway opening of the tank car. A pressure noise within the tank car startled the employee, causing him to stumble backward and fall approximately 10 feet over the guard railing at the chemical loading rack to the ground. The employee suffered fractured vertebrae, a fractured right wrist and ankle, and a dislocated jaw.
An employee was installing an electrical tray remover from a ladder. As he was descending, his missed a step and fell 6-7 feet to the floor. The employee suffered a head injury.
Two employees were installing spray foam insulation in the attic of a new residential construction. The injured employee fell 8 feet from an A-frame ladder to the floor. The employee suffered lacerations, abrasions, and a head injury.
An employee was on a raised platform attaching wires to electrical boxes. The employee fell approximately 8 feet to the floor below and struck an exit sign on the way down, resulting in an injury to his face.
An employee was in a forklift man basket fixing a garage door opener when they fell approximately 8 feet to the concrete ground below. The employee suffered head and back injuries as well as kidney bruising.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 327320)
An employee was walking through the garage and stepped on a mechanic's creeper. His feet went out from under him and he fell, sustaining a fractured right femur.
An employee was exiting a loader and coming down the ladder. His hand slipped off the railing and he fell backward onto sandy ground, landing on his side. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured pelvis and a rotator cuff tear.
A concrete mixer truck driver was walking up the stairs of the slump rack. They fell from the slump rack platform and landed on the ground in the wash-out area. The employee sustained fractures to their left scapula and lower back vertebrae.
An employee backed their concrete truck into place to begin unloading it into a concrete pump unit. He exited the vehicle, and went to the rear to unload. When he began unloading, the truck rolled backward and pinned him against the pump unit. The employee sustained fractures to their pelvis, both femurs, both tibias and fibulas, and their left ankle.
A mechanic was changing out an air spring on a concrete mixer truck cab. The air spring was receiving higher air pressure than it was designed to use, because of a faulty level check valve. This increased pressure caused the air spring to burst. Its top portion separated and struck the employee's left forearm, causing a laceration and fracture. The employee was hospitalized, requiring surgery.
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 changing the spacing on a telehandler's forks. A fork slipped, and the employee's left index finger was caught between it and the mast. The fingertip was medically amputated at the first knuckle.
An employee was pulling down a broken skid with a forklift. When the employee backed up the forklift to get the forks out of the skid he pulled down, he contacted the forks of another parked forklift, fracturing both of his legs. He was hospitalized.
An employee was carrying cups back to the kitchen when her foot got caught on a cart and she fell face-first. During the fall, a piece of glass from a cup cut the inside of her mouth, severing an artery. She also sustained a laceration on her lower lip. The employee was hospitalized.