Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Deflecto, LLC. , 303 Oxford Street, DOVER, OHIO 44622
on — Amputations, affecting the fingertip(s).
Final narrative
Two employees were cleaning rubber out of the inside of a grinder. One employee (the operator) was manually rocking the grinder blades to free the material while communicating to a temporary employee when to reach into the machine to remove the scrap rubber material. The operator rocked the machine while the temporary employee's left hand was in the grinder, and the blades amputated the employee's left ring fingertip.
An maintenance employee was checking the belt tension on a machine when their right ring finger got caught in the feed belt and the belt pulley. The employee suffered a finger amputation down to the first knuckle. The machine was guarded at the time of the incident, but was not locked out/tagged out.
An employee was operating a forklift and unloading a truck. After the truck was unloaded, the employee got off the forklift and proceeded to adjust the dock plate with a hook tool. The dock plate slipped and the employee went to adjust the plate with their hand when their left middle finger got caught. Their finger was amputated above the first joint.
An employee was rotating a carbide granulator blade when his finger was caught between the blade and a stationary part of the machine. The employee's right middle finger was partially amputated and they suffered an avulsion to the right ring fingertip.
An employee was using a CNC metal lathe machine in manual mode to check that the thread blocking tool made contact with the jaws. As the employee was manually spinning the spindle, his index fingertip was crushed between the spindle's jaws and the grooving insert, resulting in a fingertip amputation.
During a material handling operation, an employee's fingertip was caught under an air conditioning unit as the unit was lowered onto a cart. The employee's fingertip was amputated.
An employee was removing a bolt from a tractor hub when their right index finger was caught between the hub and the frame. The employee's fingertip was crushed and the employee was hospitalized.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 326299)
An employee was guiding a conveyor belt through a slitter when their hand was caught between the rollers and the table. When the employee pulled their hand out, the glove was left behind and their right middle fingertip was amputated.
A maintenance employee was working to place a 120-pound metal screen on top of a machine before installation, with the help of another employee. The injured employee's right ring finger was pinched between the screen and the machine and the fingertip was partially amputated.
On September 26, 2025, an employee was performing maintenance on an excavator when a bale of rubber fell from an adjacent rack and struck him. The employee sustained multiple fractures to his pelvic area.
An employee was cleaning a mixer door. The employee's left hand came into contact with the mixer blade, which was still slowly rotating. The employee suffered amputations to the left index and middle fingertips.
A temporary employee was working to remove a detached piece of rubber EPDM product that was hanging on the outside of a feed chute. As the employee grabbed the elongated material, the material reengaged inside the machine above the feed chute and pulled back, pinching their left index fingertip. The employee's fingertip was amputated.
An employee was working to deliver mail to an apartment building. She was waiting for a customer to move, to obtain clearance to the mailboxes. The door swung inward and closed on her right little finger. The top half of her finger was surgically amputated.
An employee fell from a step ladder while reaching for a tie-off point. He impacted the ground, and landed on his bolt bag which contained tools. The employee was hospitalized with fractured ribs, and a lacerated spleen and kidney.
On October 30, 2025, an employee was working to adjust a stackable metal shipping container. As the container dropped into place, it caught the employee's hands in an area between the upper and lower cross-members. The employee suffered a laceration to the left ring finger that required stitches, bruising to the right ring finger, and fractures to the right middle finger that necessitated medical amputation of the fingertip.
An employee was moving a scissor lift through a doorway. The employee was pinned between the scissor lift and the doorframe, sustained a back injury, and was hospitalized.
An employee was setting up communication equipment for a meeting. They were walking and tripped over a speaker on the ground. The employee sustained a leg injury.