Contact with hot objects or substances · Second degree heat (thermal) burns
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at WestRock, 2929 Louisville Ave., MONROE, LOUISIANA 71201
on — Second degree heat (thermal) burns, affecting the multiple lower extremities locations, n.e.c..
Final narrative
An employee fell into a sump of boiling water, suffering second degree burns from the waist down.
An employee was clearing the clean-up chain with a stick when he fell backward into the cut-off saw area. His arm struck against the saw, resulting in severe lacerations. The machine was unguarded at the time.
An employee was pumping overflowing process water when they stepped in an open hole containing hot process water, resulting in second-degree burns to their ankle.
An employee was transporting a trash hopper to a dumpster using a forklift. While emptying the trash hopper into the dumpster, the employee's right hand was on the dumpster latch and his left hand was on the base of the hopper. When the employee released the latch, the hopper tilted forward while the rear of the hopper lifted upward, compressing the employee's left little finger between the hopper and the dumpster. The employee suffered a partial traumatic transphalangeal amputation.
An employee was clearing a jam in a piece of equipment used to process paperboard scraps when their right hand contacted blades in the equipment, resulting in the amputation of two fingers.
An employee was operating a gluer machine. The employee's left hand was caught in the feed section of the machine, resulting in the amputation of the hand.
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 322211)
On October 22, 2025, an employee was working to put a conveyor chain back on the track of a conveyor when their fingers were caught between the chain and the chain track, pulling their right hand into the sprocket. Four fingers were amputated.
An employee was cleaning the headers of the core machine using a hand drill with a brush attachment. His glove was caught on the brush shaft, resulting in amputation of the left middle fingertip.
An employee was operating a winder paper mill machine when their right index finger became caught in the machine. The finger was partially amputated at the first knuckle.
An employee was lubricating a chain and sprocket on a corrugator splicer. He lost his balance, and his right middle finger came into contact with the chain and sprocket. The fingertip was amputated at the nail bed.
An employee was entering a building and reached out to catch a closing door. The door closed on the employee's finger, resulting in the partial amputation of the fingertip and nailbed.
A driver was exiting his vehicle outside the plant gate when his foot slipped on the top step of the truck. He fell to the ground, landed on his left hip and elbow. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured hip/femur.
A security employee was responding to an urgent call from staff regarding a violent patient. The employee tripped and fell on the floor outside of the stairwell. The employee sustained a closed head injury, contusion of the cerebrum without loss of consciousness, and a closed fracture of the distal end of the right radius.
A temporary employee was testing an electrical starter motor. He was placing tape on the starter while the breaker was not engaged, but the starter sent an arc flash that burned his hands and stomach.
An employee was walking on a sidewalk and stubbed his toe on an elevated portion of concrete, causing him to trip and fall. The employee's right knee was dislocated.