Struck by swinging part of powered vehicle · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Dustrol Inc., 3505 Lee Blvd., EL PASO, TEXAS 79936
on — Amputations, affecting the finger(s), fingernail(s), n.e.c..
Final narrative
An employee was preparing to lift the averaging arm on a milling machine and place it in the locked position so the milling machine could back up and get into position to start a new cut on asphalt. The milling machine started backing up. Another employee grabbed the averaging arm by the end to help the first employee; it raised unbalanced, the opposite end teetered, stuck into the asphalt surface, and the end the second employee was holding lifted. The employee's right index and middle fingers were caught, lacerated, and fractured between the averaging arm and the milling machine. The index finger was medically amputated below the joint and the middle finger was amputated at the tip.
HospitalizedAmputationFinger(s), fingernail(s), n.e.c.Milling machines, cold planers, and road profilers
On December 14, 2023, at 8:40 p.m., three employees were inspecting milling machines for startup. A few of the sleeves on the mill drum needed to be changed out. The injured employee was trying to input a sleeve on the mill drum using a hammer. The hammer hit the edge of the drum, which caused a metal piece to splinter off and strike the employee's cheek just below the left eye. The metal splinter embedded in the back of their eye socket, resulting in pain, swelling, and bleeding that required hospitalization.
An employee was standing on a trailer that was approximately 24 inches from the ground. The employee lost their balance and fell off the trailer, sustaining fractures to both ankles.
An employee was servicing a mill with a reported hydraulic leak. A positive wire from a battery came into contact with a hydraulic hose causing a flash fire. The employee sustained burns to the upper body.
A worker was standing beside a milling machine. His right foot got too close to the milling head and the machine ran over it causing severe lacerations.
An employee was climbing down from a tractor trailer bed when they lost their footing and grabbed onto the roll-up door to stop the fall. The roll-up door then fell onto the employee's hand, resulting in a hand fracture that required surgery.
An employee was attempting to remove a tarp from a flatbed trailer when the trailer handle struck the employee in the chest, resulting in two broken ribs and a punctured lung.
An employee was near a backhoe while the operator was getting a broom. The broom handle struck the lever that actuates the swing of the backhoe bucket. The bucket then struck the injured employee, pinning him to the outrigger. The employee suffered crush injuries to the chest.
The injured employee was being trained on loading trucks in the load out bay. The injured employee and his supervisor climbed the stairs that run parallel to the truck and trailer, walked to the upper platform used for observation and sample taking, and saw that the lid of the grain trailer was closed. The employees began working to open the lid which appeared to be stuck due to cold weather. The injured employee pulled on one of the pivot arms that connect the lid to the main body of the trailer. As the lid began to open, the employee s right hand slipped down on the pivot arm and his index finger was caught between the pivot arm and the base of the pivot arm. The employee s right index finger was fractured and three nerves were severed. The employee was hospitalized.
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