Exposure to environmental heat · Heat exhaustion, prostration
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at US Forest Service, Power Line Fire, LEWISTON, IDAHO 83501
on — Heat exhaustion, prostration, affecting the bODY SYSTEMS.
Final narrative
An employee experienced seizures at night after fighting a fire during the day. The employee suffered a sodium imbalance due to heat exposure.
An employee working as a contracted firefighter was using a bulldozer to push back an active fire line when they became entrapped in flames, resulting in first- and second-degree burns.
On June 22, 2023, a crew was hiking and clearing trails while heading to an avalanche area to remove trees. The crew came across a tree that was 10-inches in diameter and suspended above ground across the trail. The injured employee used a hand saw to cut the tree. The tree was tangled with another tree, causing it to kick up and strike the injured employee. She fell to the ground and became pinned to a log, resulting in a puncture wound to the leg and lung damage that required hospitalization.
An employee was receiving an overview on how to clean out a piece of the top dressing machine when it gets jammed with pearlite. The employee went to feel the roller grooves when the machine activated and amputated his right index fingertip.
Employees were fighting wildfires when the wind changed and blew the fire back onto the firefighters. The employees sustained multiple burn injuries and one firefighter was run over by a UTV while trying to escape the flames.
An employee was performing finishing work on a residential driveway when they began to experience body cramps and were hospitalized for heat stress and dehydration.
An agent was participating in SWAT team selection and was performing various physical fitness skills including running and exercise intervals. The agent experienced dehydration and a muscular injury that required hospitalization.
On September 26, 2023, an employee was delivering packages when he began to feel ill with a pain in his side. He was hospitalized for heat exhaustion and dehydration.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 921190)
An employee was on a four-step work stand while sanding an area of an aircraft. He was climbing down the work stand when he tripped over an air hose and fell to the level below, resulting in a fractured femur.
A Bureau of Land Management (BLM) employee was assisting a fire crew with clearing a forest trail. The employee was struck in the left leg by a fire-rated chainsaw. The chainsaw struck the employee underneath their chaps and above their boot. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.
An employee handed a fuel hose to another employee at a gas station pump and then turned around, tripped over the hose, and fell to the ground. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured hip.
An employee was conducting fire suppression operations on a wildfire. He pulled a hose from the engine. He then charged the hose and began to put on his gloves. A flareup occurred and the employee sustained burns to his face and hands.
An employee was diagnosing the lack of flow of product to a powder bin. The employee removed the rotary star valve below the bin. While he was reinstalling the valve, his right middle finger was crushed between its shaft and its housing. The finger was partially amputated.
An employee was standing on a multi-purpose ladder installing head flashing over a window. Their feet were approximately 6 feet off the ground and three rungs from the top. The employee lost their grip on the drill they were using and the ladder tipped over. The employee fell from the ladder to the ground, resulting in a fractured left wrist, bruised chest, and lacerations to their face and lip.
An employee was inspecting the overhead area of a single-person lift and repositioning the lift through a double doorway. As they were transitioning through the doorway, they were caught between the doorframe and the vertical mast of the lift. The employee was hospitalized with injuries to the nose, left maxillary sinus, left orbital bone, and left jaw, with fractures at the maxillary sinus area.
An employee was loading a 4-inch wooden door into a pickup truck when he felt a pop in his right side behind his shoulder blade. He was hospitalized later that day and underwent surgery, having suffered a collapsed right lung.