Indirect exposure to electricity, greater than 220 volts · Electrical burns, unspecified
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Davey Tree Surgery Company, 5619 Brairwood Forest Dr., HOUSTON, TEXAS 77088
on — Electrical burns, unspecified, affecting the upper and lower limb(s).
Final narrative
An employee was trimming a tree when the branch he was cutting came close enough to a power line that electricity arced over to him, causing burns to his right hand and toes.
HospitalizedUpper and lower limb(s)Limbs, branches-unattached
More severe injuries at Davey Tree Surgery Company
An employee was cutting a tree limb when it swung back and hit his leg. He suffered a lower right leg fracture and dislocated kneecap, requiring hospitalization.
An employee was operating a chipper and came in contact with a guy wire. The wire was drawn into the chipper and broke the employee's ankle, requiring hospitalization.
A crew was working near an electrical pole. A co-worker was using a front-loader to grade a slope when the loader slid into a guy-wire and became tangled and stuck. The injured employee used a handheld grinder to cut the wire a few feet from the ground. The lower part of the wire fell to the ground, but the upper part of the wire fell toward the pole and contacted an energized part before the end landed in nearby bushes. The employee attempted to shake the bush to free the wire so it could fall back toward the pole. The wire popped up and contacted his hands, resulting in electrical entry burns to both hands and exit burns on both feet.
On November 18, 2023, two employees were using a 2x4 to lift a power line. The boom lift they were operating made contact with power lines and both employees sustained electrical shock injuries.
An employee was part of a crew that was servicing a power line. The employee was in a bucket truck when he contacted the 7,200-volt power line. The electricity entered through one hand and exited the other, causing several electrical burns. The employee was not wearing proper personal protective equipment at the time.
An employee was helping a crew set up a 45-foot pole between two other poles. It was being set up between two energized lines and the pole made contact with the A-phase. The employee was electrocuted and lost consciousness. The electricity also caused an entry wound in their left forearm and an exit wound in their left foot.
An employee was handling a 45-foot long rebar for installation on the third floor of a building at a 30-foot elevation. The rebar came into close proximity of a powerline situated 13 feet off the building. The employee sustained electrical burns to his hands from electric discharge, requiring hospitalization.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 561730)
An employee was helping to set up a mulch blowing truck when they were struck by an oncoming vehicle. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured knee, a concussion, and a head laceration; they also received stitches on their arm.
An employee was using a table saw to cut a piece of wood when the saw cut his thumb, index, and middle fingers. His index finger was amputated and he was hospitalized.
An employee was mowing a residential lawn at a client's house. The mower slid on the land and tipped over onto him. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured vertebra in the neck and partial paralysis.
After cutting a slab of beef short ribs, an employee turned to grab the pieces he had cut and his right hand contacted the saw blade. The employee sustained an amputation to his right index finger.
An employee was unloading a carpet pad from a truck when they fell from the truck dock to the concrete below, resulting in five fractured ribs and an injury to their left lung.
An employee was walking up a walkway to enter a building through the back entrance when she tripped over the lip of the cement ramp. The employee fell and sustained a fractured right hip.