Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at METRO EAST INDUSTRIES, INC., 3126 MISSOURI AVE., EAST SAINT LOUIS, ILLINOIS 62205
on — Amputations, affecting the finger(s), fingernail(s), n.e.c..
Final narrative
On 6/27/2018, an employee was attempting to remove a bolt from the control arm of a disassembled train locomotive wheel assembly. After he removed the nut, the arm shifted due to its weight and came down on his right middle finger, resulting in an amputation to the first knuckle.
HospitalizedAmputationFinger(s), fingernail(s), n.e.c.Vehicle and mobile equipment parts, n.e.c.
More severe injuries at METRO EAST INDUSTRIES, INC.
An employee was removing a power assembly from a locomotive engine using an overhead crane. The power assembly became stuck, and two 1-inch lifting bolts failed as the crane continued to apply lifting pressure. This cause the power assembly to come back down and crush the employee's right hand against the engine housing. He suffered two broken bones in the hand, as well as tissue and ligament damage, and was hospitalized.
An employee was installing decking on the B-deck of an autorack rail car. The employee fell to the walking/working surface below, suffered fractures, and was hospitalized.
An employee was removing wooden 2-by-4 deck boards from a bulkhead flat railcar. He was using an overhead crane and lifting device to pull the boards up from the securement bolts. He was near the end of the railcar, removing the final groups of boards. The overhead crane's steel lifting device caught a 1/2-inch steel body bolster plate under the wood; as the crane began to lift, the lifting device slipped off the plate and flew into the air. It struck the employee in the face and right arm, causing non-displaced facial fractures and lacerations to the lip and gum line and a bruised right upper arm.
An employee was climbing down the end ladder of a railroad hopper car when he lost his footing and fell approximately 7 feet to the ground, sustaining bi-lateral heel fractures.
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 488210)
An employee was using his left hand to push an axle down the line on a raised track work area while holding the remaining axle back with his right hand. A finger on his right hand was caught between the rail and the dust guard of the axle, resulting in a fracture and a laceration.
An employee was sampling a railcar in a storage yard. After sampling the railcar, the employee was climbing down the railcar ladder when he fell off the top step of the ladder to the ground, resulting in fractures to six ribs, his right arm, and two vertebrae.
Employees were watering a train at a train platform. One of them went to step over a hose, tripped, and fell to the ground. He suffered a broken knee. The employee was hospitalized for surgery.
Employees were performing maintenance operations on a railroad line when the machine experienced a load conveyor motor failure. While clearing the machine to allow for repairs, an employee pinned the left side of the swing conveyor. The operator on the right side then requested a slight bump to the left to align the right side for pinning. Once the swing was in position, the operator went to pin the right side and the chain tensioner failed, resulting in an abrupt release of the swing chain. The chain snapped back and struck the operator s right hand, resulting in a 1-inch laceration and a fractured fifth metacarpal. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery on the hand.
The injured employee loaded a container onto a railcar and then mounted the railcar to put in the locking mechanism for the container. The employee was struck by another container that a crane was loading onto the railcar and fell approximately four feet from the railcar to the concrete ground. The employee sustained fractures to their pelvis, shoulder, and two ribs.
An employee was changing a die in a press when the die slipped and crushed the employee's left index finger. The employee sustained an open facture of the tuft of the left distal phalanx and a partial amputation.
An employee was driving a boom lift (in the lowered position) in an exterior dock area. The lift s left wheels rolled onto base plates that covered a 3-foot-deep sump pit. The base plates failed, and one side of the lift dropped. The employee's left leg was caught under the lift basket, and he suffered a fracture to the lower leg including the ankle.