R.J. Industry

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.

An employee was setting a rebuilt water pump using a forklift and a chain after inspecting the area where the pump was going to be placed. While the employee's right hand was on a nearby valve flange, the water pump shifted while in the air and struck the employee's right index finger, fracturing it. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.

A waste water technician was retrieving a tool to adjust a gauge on a water pump when a copperhead snake bit the employee's right hand. The employee was hospitalized.

An employee was at the top of the ladder on the passenger side of a tanker trailer. While the tanker was being loaded, the employee was checking the level of the liquid inside the tanker by looking through the manhole on top of the tanker. The employee may have been overwhelmed by hydrogen sulfide (H2S) or the odor of raw sewage, causing him to lose consciousness and fall approximately 10 feet to the ground. The employee sustained a brain bleed and fractures to their skull, face, spine, and multiple ribs.

An employee was working in a wastewater facility, cleaning a metal screen. He positioned it against a railing on top of a metal grating, which was above a headworks bypass channel. When he stepped onto a trapezoid-shaped section of grating, it slid forward and tipped into the channel. The employee fell about 5 feet into the channel, which contained about 1 foot of stagnant wastewater. He suffered a rotator cuff and ligament tear in his left shoulder, a contusion on the left side of his back, a broken left-side rib, and a tear of the medial collateral ligament in his right knee.

An employee was lifting a compactor when it slid in his hand and caught his right little finger between the compactor and the truck trailer, resulting in a partial amputation.

An employee was cleaning leaves with a backpack blower when he fell from a ladder, resulting in injuries to his head, neck, and back.

An employee was operating a battery-powered broom to clean demolition debris off the top of the outermost bridge girder. The girder was approximately 11 feet above the demolition scaffold below. The employee fell approximately 8 feet to wind bracing below. The employee was hospitalized with a pelvis/tailbone fracture. Fall protection was in place at the time.

An employee slipped while descending in a stairwell, fell, and suffered multiple contusions/bruises to the head, neck, shoulders, knees, and back. She was hospitalized.

An employee's right middle finger was caught in a nip point. The employee suffered an amputation to the middle finger at the first knuckle.

An employee was directing trucks as they entered and left a highway work zone. A vehicle struck them, resulting in multiple fractures and other injuries. The employee was hospitalized.