Caught in running equipment or machinery during maintenance, cleaning · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Tenneco Inc., 150 Fisher Av., VAN WERT, OHIO 45891
on — Amputations, affecting the fingertip(s).
Final narrative
An employee had just replaced a broken sprocket and put in a new chain on a high-volume oil conveyor. The chain seized up. As he tried to free it, it took off and his left index finger was caught between the chain and the sprocket. The fingertip was amputated halfway up the nail.
A maintenance employee was conducting repairs on the conveyor belt of an automatic palletizer. The employee's shirt fell in front of a sensor causing the equipment to energize. The employee's right middle finger was caught by chains within the conveyor belt motor resulting in a partial amputation.
An employee was performing an air check on an articulated dump truck when their finger was pinched in the clamping mechanism on the lift assist. The employee's right middle finger was amputated above the distal interphalangeal joint.
An employee was responding to a work order relating to a machine that was not cooling when the lid of the machine lowered onto the employee's thumb. They sustained a left thumb fracture and partial amputation that required hospitalization.
On January 14, 2020, an employee was clearing a blockage in the gate valve of the deaerator tank located in the boiler room. As the employee was getting the gate valve fully nested, the blockage cleared and the employee was sprayed with hot water (225 F). The employee was hospitalized with burns to the face, neck and shoulders.
Two employees were repairing the hydraulic engagement pins on a rented front-end wheel loader. The machine controls were activated to move the attachment pins and an employee's finger was caught between the pins and the bushings. Their right index finger was partially amputated.
An employee was cleaning the conveyor on a piece of equipment when they slipped and their right hand was pulled into the chain sprocket. The employee's fifth fingertip was amputated.
An employee was throwing blankets onto a blanket folding and stacking machine. A blanket got stuck in the machine and she attempted to remove it when the machine contacted her right little finger, resulting in a fingertip amputation.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 336510)
An employee was responding to a service request for a cable stripping machine that was making noise and not functioning consistently. While testing its function, the machine contacted the employee s right index fingertip, resulting in a fingertip amputation to the tuft.
An employee was using a handheld cordless electric torque wrench. The tool's reaction arm came into contact with the employee's left hand, causing an amputation to the middle finger above the first knuckle.
On August 6, 2025, an employee was preparing to weld a metal sheet that goes between containers and weighs 800 pounds. The employee was placing a two-foot wooden brace (4 by 4) under the metal, which was being raised by a crane operator using a magnet. The magnet shifted and caused the load to catch the employee's right index fingertip against the wooden brace, resulting in a fingertip amputation.
An employee was climbing up a ladder to the top of a railcar. The employee slipped and fell from the ladder, striking the coupler of the railcar during the fall. This caused the employee's body to shift, and they landed on their head/nose/face. The employee suffered broken ribs, a broken cheekbone, a broken nose, and internal bleeding.
An employee was working to deliver mail to an apartment building. She was waiting for a customer to move, to obtain clearance to the mailboxes. The door swung inward and closed on her right little finger. The top half of her finger was surgically amputated.
An employee fell from a step ladder while reaching for a tie-off point. He impacted the ground, and landed on his bolt bag which contained tools. The employee was hospitalized with fractured ribs, and a lacerated spleen and kidney.
On October 30, 2025, an employee was working to adjust a stackable metal shipping container. As the container dropped into place, it caught the employee's hands in an area between the upper and lower cross-members. The employee suffered a laceration to the left ring finger that required stitches, bruising to the right ring finger, and fractures to the right middle finger that necessitated medical amputation of the fingertip.
An employee was moving a scissor lift through a doorway. The employee was pinned between the scissor lift and the doorframe, sustained a back injury, and was hospitalized.
An employee was setting up communication equipment for a meeting. They were walking and tripped over a speaker on the ground. The employee sustained a leg injury.