Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at K-Pel Industrial Services, Inc., 178 Presque Isle Street, FORT FAIRFIELD, MAINE 04742
on — Fractures, affecting the pelvis.
Final narrative
An employee was loading a telehandler onto a flatbed trailer to transport it to the next jobsite. The employee was backing the telehandler off the trailer to realign it. While backing up, two tires slipped off the trailer causing the telehandler to tip over on to its side and fall to the ground. The employee sustained a broken pelvis, bruised ribs, and a head laceration. The employee was hospitalized.
HospitalizedPelvisIndustrial vehicle, material hauling and transport-powered, n.e.c
An employee was operating a sit-down type of material handling equipment (MHE). They were turning the MHE with the clamp attachment in the air when the MHE fell over onto its right side. The employee's right foot was caught under the battery cover of the MHE. The employee sustained a chemical burn from the battery and a fractured right ankle.
An employee was driving an unloaded forklift outside a building. During a left turn, the forklift drove off the paved area onto an unpaved surface, became unstable, and tipped over. The employee was pinned under the forklift and suffered two broken leg bones and a broken hip.
An employee was trimming tree branches from an aerial lift. As they were maneuvering the aerial bucket lift from inside, the truck drove over soft ground and tipped over. The bucket lift fell to the ground with the employee tied off inside, resulting in rib fractures.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 332710)
An employee was positioning dunnage on a trailer while pipe was unloaded from a forklift. A pipe fell and the employee's right thumb and index finger were caught between the pipe and a piece of dunnage. The thumb was crushed, and the index fingertip was amputated.
An employee was using a lifting sling on a crane to move a straight-bar bundle and place it on top of an existing bundle. When moving the lifting sling, it became pinched between the bundle and a wood cleat. The bundle then fell onto the employee's left foot, resulting in crush injuries.
An employee was stacking metal tubes using a forklift. A stack became unstable and the employee got out of the forklift to steady it, instructing his helper to get into the forklift. The forklift movement caused some tubes to fall and strike the employee, resulting in an open fracture of his left hand.
An employee was setting up a flexible gear coupling hub in a lathe, preparing to bore it out to fit a shaft. The hub assembly was not secured in the chuck when the crane support was removed, and the employee's right little finger was caught between the hub assembly and the inside of the lathe. The fingertip was amputated.
An employee was using a crowbar to loosen a flat bar when the crowbar struck the employee's right eye. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.
A crew was installing drilled micropiles alongside an outdoor covered deck foundation. The injured employee was working the front of the drill when a loose section of casing dropped onto the tip of a rig wrench and pulled the wrench down to an embedded casing. The employee's left little finger was caught between the rig wrench and the embedded casing and was amputated above the top knuckle.
Two employees were working to change a tire on a mobile slasher saw. The slasher weighs around 2,000 pounds and is towed. Employee 2 was lifting the saw while the injured employee was placing a block of wood under the frame for support. The slasher then lowered onto the block and the injured employee's left thumb was crushed between the slasher frame and the wood block, leading to an amputation at the first knuckle.
An employee was using a crane to move a 44-foot, 3,343-pound I-beam. As the beam was moving west, it straightened out (north to south), beginning to swing south toward the northwest corner of a building. The crane then sent the beam southward, directly toward the corner of the building. The beam caught the tips of the employee's left index, middle, and ring fingers against the building. The last joints of the middle and ring fingers were amputated, and the last joint of the index finger was partially crushed.
An employee was standing on a step stool, removing the nuts and bolts from the frame of a solar panel that was being replaced. The employee's cheek made contact with a connector with damaged insulation. The employee was shocked, briefly lost consciousness, and fell to the ground, suffering an injury to the left shoulder.