Contact with hot objects or substances · Second degree heat (thermal) burns
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Darling Ingredients Inc., 264 FM 2336, BASTROP, TEXAS 78602
on — Second degree heat (thermal) burns, affecting the shoulder(s) and arm(s).
Final narrative
An employee was attempting to unclog hot (250 to 270 degrees) grease from a pipe when the grease caused second degree burns to the employee's shoulder and first degree burns to the arm.
HospitalizedShoulder(s) and arm(s)Fats, oils, cooking greases
A driver just completed dumping the contents of his truck bed and the hides basket at their facility. The employee noticed that the hides basket door did not close completely after the dump bed was lowered with the exterior controls. The employee went to manually push the hides basket door closed when their hand was pinched between the door and body of the hides basket, resulting in a right ring fingertip amputation. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.
On June 2, 2023, an employee was standing on the mezzanine around the pressure cookers when hot steam and 300-degree grease escaped from the ports. The employee sustained burns to 57% of their body.
An employee was on a catwalk pressure washing the inside of a feather dryer to prepare it for maintenance. The employee's knee pad slipped, causing him to lose his balance and move forward. The stream from the pressure washer contacted his left index finger, resulting in a laceration that required hospitalization.
An employee was cleaning a centrifuge when he dropped a pair of pliers. The pliers struck a valve containing hot water, causing it to it discharge and strike him in the face. The employee sustained second-degree burns to the nose and right cheek.
An employee connected a steam line to a hose to clean equipment when the fitting broke loose. They were struck by steam in the left inner thigh, resulting in burns that required hospitalization.
An employee was making tea when she noticed tea grinds were collecting on the side and water was no longer dripping through the funnel. The employee was checking the funnel when boiling water and tea grinds spilled onto the left side of her body. The employee sustained burns to her neck, back, and arm.
An employee had turned off the ball valve on a waterpipe system and was removing the plug when the coupling system attached to the strainer came apart. Hot water sprayed on his arm and back, resulting in first- and second-degree burns that required surgery.
An employee was using a shovel to remove waste vermiculite from molten zinc. The metal had been placed in a bin and partially hardened. The employee broke through the partially hardened metal; still-molten metal flowed to the employee's steel-toed right boot and entered through the cloth boot tongue. The employee suffered a third-degree burn to the right foot and was hospitalized.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 311613)
A temporary employee was working to unclog butter from a butter melter pump. His right index finger was caught in the machine, and the fingertip was amputated. The machine was energized at the time.
An employee working at the reject conveyor was placing a product guide bar on the conveyor. This metal guide bar is placed on the side of the conveyor belt to funnel the product, preventing it from falling off the sides. As he was getting the attachment positioned, his left ring finger was caught between the conveyor belt and the conveyor belt frame. The employee's finger was fractured and partially amputated.
An employee was using a pneumatic impact wrench to tighten bolts on a brake press anvil. The impact wrench hooked up on something, causing the tool to rotate. This spun his left hand with it. Their index finger was pinched between the side handle of the tool and an anvil bolt on the press, resulting in an open fracture. The employee required a medical amputation of the fingertip.
An employee was cleaning the area under a mobile elevated work platform. The platform lowered and struck the employee, resulting in a fractured right femur. The employee was hospitalized.
As an employee was opening an infeed valve. Hot tallow oil in the line above fell back down the pipe and came out of an open pressure relief valve, striking the employee on the thighs. The employee was hospitalized with second-degree burns to his thigh. Another employee sustained burns to their back but they were not hospitalized.
After cutting a slab of beef short ribs, an employee turned to grab the pieces he had cut and his right hand contacted the saw blade. The employee sustained an amputation to his right index finger.
An employee was unloading a carpet pad from a truck when they fell from the truck dock to the concrete below, resulting in five fractured ribs and an injury to their left lung.
An employee was walking up a walkway to enter a building through the back entrance when she tripped over the lip of the cement ramp. The employee fell and sustained a fractured right hip.