Struck against moving part of machinery or equipment · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Great Plains Manufacturing , 910 East 8th Street, ELLSWORTH, KANSAS 67439
on — Amputations, affecting the fingertip(s).
Final narrative
An employee was using a horizontal saw to cut tubes. The saw cut about 1/8 inch off the tip off his left middle finger.
AmputationFingertip(s)Band saws
More severe injuries at Great Plains Manufacturing
An employee was using a powered industrial truck (PIT) to move parts stored in totes inside a distribution warehouse. The employee knelt down to manually remove an empty tote from the forks of the PIT. The employee felt something pop in their back and was unable to get up. The employee was hospitalized with bulging discs in their lower back.
Employees were stacking equipment onto storage racks when a rack shifted and an employee's right hand was caught between racks. The employee sustained fractures to the hand, and their right index finger was partially amputated.
An employee was using a press to bend a piece to a 90-degree angle. When the die came down, the piece did not bend 90 percent as it was supposed to, so the employee lifted the die, held the piece with both hands, and activated the press with the foot pedal. The press die then amputated the employee's thumbs from the middle of the nail to the tip.
An employee was operating a strip saw. As the employee shut off the saw, their right index and middle fingertips were amputated by the blade before it came to a complete stop.
An employee was using a table saw to cut a piece of wood for wall framing. The wood jumped, causing the employee's hand to move toward the saw, amputating their left index finger and causing a laceration on their hand.
An employee was operating a trim saw. While trying to free a jammed board she had just cut, she came into contact with the running saw blade, which amputated her right thumb.
An employee was climbing up a fixed ladder alongside a building to inspect a roof leak. The employee fell off the ladder and landed on the ground about 15 feet below. The employee was hospitalized with fractures to both wrists.
On September 16, 2025, an employee went to pull a weld stand when he tripped and fell, landing on the floor on his right hip. The employee suffered hip and fibula fractures that required hospitalization and surgery.
An employee was accessing a tensioned hook that required a hoist mechanism to be engaged. He was unhooking the lift hook from a shelf column when the "up" button was pressed, which released the tension on the pneumatic air hoist. The employee's right index finger was caught between the hook and the column, resulting in a soft tissue amputation and fracture to the fingertip.
A crane was lifting a pole out of a zinc bath in the galvanizing department when the chain attached to the pole broke. The pole fell back into the bath and liquid zinc splashed onto an employee, who suffered third-degree burns to an arm, the abdomen, the torso, the upper left side of the chest, an ear, the neck, and a hand.
An employee was working to remove a product blockage from a piece of equipment. The employee was struck by a metal bar near the deck of the pin mixer equipment and sustained blunt force trauma to the torso.
An employee was moving a rack onto a lower conveyor in the south heat treat area when their finger got caught between the part tray and the rollers, resulting in a fingertip fracture and amputation.
An employee was climbing a ladder to get on top of the breakroom. The ladder slipped, causing him to fall to the ground. The employee sustained fractures to his upper back, left foot, and ankle.
Two employees were removing a circuit breaker. The injured employee was using wrenches in the removal process. One of the wrenches contacted an adjacent door, resulting in an arc flash. The employee suffered burns to their neck, face, and ear, as well as momentary vision loss due to the flash.
An employee bent over to pick up a rubber mat from the ground. When he grabbed the corner of the mat, a rattlesnake hidden under it bit his left middle finger near the first knuckle. He was hospitalized.