Direct exposure to electricity, unspecified · Electrocutions, electric shocks
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at COMMONWEALTH EDISON COMPANY, 350 South 2nd Street, ELGIN, ILLINOIS 60123
on — Electrocutions, electric shocks, affecting the bODY SYSTEMS.
Final narrative
An employee was approaching a pad-mounted transformer in preparation to perform voltage testing. The employee made contact with live electrical components within the transformer and suffered electrical shock.
A crew was removing old distribution poles. As they were removing the bottom section of a pole post, a winch line became tangled with slack. Two of the employees climbed on top of the crew's truck to fix the issue. The load then pulled the winch line tight around the finger of one of the employees, causing the amputation of their fingertip.
An employee was helping a crew set up a 45-foot pole between two other poles. It was being set up between two energized lines and the pole made contact with the A-phase. The employee was electrocuted and lost consciousness. The electricity also caused an entry wound in their left forearm and an exit wound in their left foot.
An employee was installing a 15-amp breaker in an electrical panel when a 12-gauge ground wire touched the positive busbar of the panel, resulting in an arc flash. The employee sustained a second-degree burn to their left hand.
An employee was repairing an HVAC system in the drop tile ceiling of a conference room when they were shocked, causing them to fall from the ladder. The employee sustained burns to their right middle and ring fingers.
An employee was replacing a contactor inside an electrical panel attached directly to a press. The press itself was receiving power from another main panel. After replacing the contactor, the employee flipped the switch and an arc flash occurred, burning the employee's elbow, bicep, and neck.
An employee was attempting to switch a medium-voltage primary cable and install a 200-amp fuse barrel. The employee contacted the bottom of the switch gear cradle for the fuse barrel, causing an arc blast. The electricity entered the employee s left hand and exited his big toes, resulting in electric shock and burns to the left hand, arm, shoulder, and both feet. The employee was hospitalized.
On December 6, 2023, an employee of Duke Energy was working on a single-phase 120-/240-volt parallel service re-tap when a secondary flash occurred in an underground service. The employee suffered a second-degree burn to the face and was hospitalized.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 221119)
Employees were preparing to replace a primary electrical cable. While two of the employees were working to remove the cable on one side of a switchgear, they came into contact with a wrench and the outside part of the switchgear. One employee suffered an electrical shock.
An employee was installing personal protective grounds at a substation when their hand contacted the end of the ground that was not energized, but induced voltage was created by wind and shocked them. This resulted in a burn on their thumb.
At about 9:35 a.m. on March 18, 2024, an employee was conducting maintenance on a non-operational fan controller in a switchgear room. The employee pulled the controller and began installing a new one. The employee was electrocuted, suffering third-degree burns to the right hand and fingers as well as burns to the right forearm, 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.