Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at MEARS GROUP, INC., NW 33rd Street and NW 33rd Avenue, MIAMI, FLORIDA 33142
on — Soreness, pain, hurt-nonspecified injury, affecting the face, unspecified.
Final narrative
A crew was performing hydrostatic testing to a recently installed steel gas service. The injured employee was turning off the valve when it blew out, striking the employee in the face.
An employee was installing gas lines when a tracked excavator drove over the employee's right foot. The employee was hospitalized with fractures to their tibia and fibula.
An employee was tossing a damaged toilet into a compactor. The toilet bounced off the compactor and lacerated the employee's right wrist, cutting an artery and tendon.
An employee was operating a hydraulic jack to bend a frame when the jack came loose and struck the employee. They were hospitalized for a spleen injury.
A truck had been towed into the shop with a flat tire and a blown airbag. An employee checked the tire for damage and was airing the tire. The employee was installing the valve core when the bead slipped off the rim. Air escaped, and the aluminum wheel struck the employee's head and face. The employee became unresponsive and was bleeding.
On December 14, 2023, at 8:40 p.m., three employees were inspecting milling machines for startup. A few of the sleeves on the mill drum needed to be changed out. The injured employee was trying to input a sleeve on the mill drum using a hammer. The hammer hit the edge of the drum, which caused a metal piece to splinter off and strike the employee's cheek just below the left eye. The metal splinter embedded in the back of their eye socket, resulting in pain, swelling, and bleeding that required hospitalization.
An employee was pushing a line of carts into a vestibule when the door cable snapped and struck his right ankle. The employee suffered a fracture that required surgery and hospitalization.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 237120)
An employee was acting as a spotter for a forklift operator. While its forks were being raised, the forklift came into contact with a power line. The employee was touching the forklift's metal frame at the time and was shocked on the left palm. The employee suffered burns to both the left palm and the sole of the left foot.
An employee was working as a fire watch. The employee was exposed to anhydrous ammonia and was not able to see while climbing down a ladder due to eye irritation. The employee fell and was hospitalized for a broken ankle.
An employee was standing on the ground awaiting the lowering of a pipe. After the pipe was lowered to the ground by a skid steer, it rolled and struck the employee's left leg. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured leg.
An employee was tightening a gas pipe with a wrench when the wrench slipped from his hand. The employee's arm then hit a metal cross-brace, resulting in a lacerated arm.
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.