Caught in running equipment or machinery, n.e.c. · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at BEF Foods, Inc., 1109 E. Industrial Drive, SULPHUR SPRINGS, TEXAS 75482
on — Amputations, affecting the finger(s), fingernail(s), n.e.c..
Final narrative
An employee was loading corrugated sheets into a box former from a 24" platform beside the equipment. As he was descending from the platform, he swung under the top rail to the floor and momentarily lost his balance. His right hand then entered the maintenance access opening on the backside of the box former, resulting in a partial digit amputation at the middle phalanx of the right index finger.
An employee was moving a sausage linker when it started to tip over. The employee ran into another piece of equipment and was then hit by the linker. The employee suffered a hematoma and a blunt impact to the left leg and a cut on the little finger, and was hospitalized.
On December 30, 2020, an employee was manually lifting a roll of film. The employee tripped and fell; the roll landed on their left hand. The end of the employee's fourth finger was amputated.
On September 4, 2020, an employee was performing sanitation duties on a horizontal auger when their left arm became caught in the auger. The employee sustained an amputation to the left arm above the elbow.
An employee was attempting to tack weld and repair a tubular steel livestock gate. The gate was in a bind due to a broken component and was positioned in such a way that a gap was present between the broken component and anchoring rail. As the employee placed the left hand on the anchoring rail, it dropped, pinching the soft tissue of the employee's left index finger between the component and anchor. As the employee pulled the hand back, the employee's left index finger was amputated (without bone loss).
An employee was using a T-handled tool to attempt to pull a food-filled drain basket out of the floor. She fell to her left side, landing in the hot water that was flooding the floor. She was burned on the left side, back, and forearm, and was hospitalized.
Employees were assembling and testing a butterfly valve unit and actuator combo. When the unit was function tested with air, the valve gate closed on an employee's left thumb resulting in a fracture and laceration.
An employee was doing a daily inspection of the sifter screen on a mixer when the mixer line activated. The armature for the screen struck the employee's right wrist. Their wrist was cut and their hand was fractured.
An employee was doing a dry run during the setup of an ice cream machine. The machine indexed and the filler head amputated the employee's left middle finger above the last knuckle.
An employee was on a 3-foot ladder guiding cable onto a spool during installation on an overhead door. As the control box was jogged, the employee's hand was caught between the cable and spool, resulting in a wrist and hand fracture.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 311612)
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 using a de-clipping machine to cut the metal clips off of sausage sticks. As the employee put a link of sausages into the machine, their hand slipped into the point of operation. A piston pinched the employee's left index finger, causing a partial amputation.
An employee was operating a small tabletop grinder in a food safety quality assurance lab. She was stuffing meat down the grinder's chute when the grinder caught her right hand. Its auger caused an amputation to her middle finger and a partial amputation to her index finger.
A maintenance employee was removing an inspection plate from an industrial cooker. Hot liquid spilled onto him and burned his hands, arms, and torso area. He was hospitalized.
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.