Fall through surface or existing opening less than 6 feet · Fractures
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Operations Management International, Inc., 691 Palm Ave., KEY WEST, FLORIDA 33040
on — Fractures, affecting the chest, except internal location of diseases or disorders.
Final narrative
A crew of four employees was cleaning out storm water sediment traps using a hydraulic pump to remove the water from the gravity well and then a vac truck to remove the sand and other debris caught in the sediment traps (using a cage to surround the manhole while performing the work). The crew had finished cleaning the sediment traps and three of the employees were putting the equipment back in the truck. The injured employee was replacing the manhole cover and fell approximately five feet into the gravity well. The employee sustained broken ribs and was hospitalized.
HospitalizedChest, except internal location of diseases or disordersSewers, manholes, storm drains
More severe injuries at Operations Management International, Inc.
An employee was removing lime from the interior wall of a holding tank while working from a baker-style scaffold. A section of lime fell and struck the side of the scaffold causing it to tip over. The employee fell to the ground approximately 5 feet below and sustained fractures to both wrists.
An employee had locked and tagged out an air handling unit to replace covers that were removed during a hurricane. He noticed that the belt was loose and attempted to tighten it. He then checked the tension of the belt and rotated the belt with his right hand. The momentum created when turning the motor pulled his fingertips into the pulley, lacerating and fracturing his right index, middle, and ring fingertips.
A temporary employee walked across a wooden pallet to retrieve product to stock. When he walked back across the pallet, it broke, causing the employee to fall to the ground and sustain a fractured hip.
On April 10, 2023, at 12:00 PM, an employee was using a broom to clear rock from a building's foundation in preparation for a spray-on vapor barrier. There was a 4-foot deep trench next to the building where the employee was working and the soil at the trench's edge fell away. The employee fell into the trench and was hospitalized for a left pelvis and/or femur fracture.
An employee was walking up a steel staircase to check wiring in the electrical room. The staircase had a top platform with a grate that was sitting across the beams of the platform. The grate had shifted and as the employee stepped on it, it gave way, causing him to fall approximately 3 feet to the ground below. The grate landed on the employee and he was hospitalized for four transverse process fractures in the lower spine.
An employee was stocking the freezer and stepped on a wood pallet. The employee's foot went into the pallet and they sustained a right ankle fracture that required hospitalization and surgery.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 221310)
An employee was replacing a water check valve at a water plant. He was lifting the valve with two hands when it slipped and contacted his right ring finger, resulting in a partial amputation without bone loss.
The injured employee was assisting with hitching a trailer to a truck. The employee was working to engage the lunette ring on the trailer with the pintle hook on the truck. A mini-excavator began driving onto the rear of the trailer. The added weight caused the rear of the trailer to lower and the front to rise, creating a pinch point between the trailer and the truck. The employee s left thumb was caught in the latch mechanism of the pintle hook. The thumb tip was partially amputated and required surgery.
An employee was spraying down an area by a conveyor he had been using. Moving parts (such as rollers and chains) inside a gear box amputated his right arm at the elbow. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was adjusting a machine attached to a tractor that rolls out hose into a trench. The machine lowered to the ground and part of it landed on his big toe, amputating it.
An employee was helping a coworker transport a tall palm tree with a mini skid steer. The employee was severely shocked by a high-voltage electrical wire above the ground.
An employee was retrieving a Christmas tree from a shelf using a ladder. He missed a step and fell to the concrete floor. He sustained injury to his head and wrist.
An employee was operating an agricultural tractor during sugarcane harvesting. The employee sustained a lumbar sprain due to vibration or motion from the tractor.
An employee was moving a 3-ton condensing unit, strapped down on a dolly, out of a garage. The strap broke, causing the employee to fall backward onto the brick pavered driveway. The employee suffered injury to a spinal ligament in the neck.