Caught in running equipment or machinery during regular operation · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at American Excelsior Company, 4032 Parkway Drive, FLORENCE, ALABAMA 35630
on — Amputations, affecting the finger(s), fingernail(s), unspecified.
Final narrative
A temporary employee attempted to retriever a push stick from inside a baler when the baler cycled and partially amputated a finger.
On August 8, 2024, an employee was using a pad machine to produce "highway rolls" (16-foot-wide wood blanket). He was trying to adjust a blanket that was not feeding into the machine's baler when the netting of the blanket caught his right hand. His right arm was pulled into the baler and was broken and lacerated. He was hospitalized. Machine guarding was found to be insufficient.
On April 24, 2018, an employee was attempting to unjam a blanket machine when another employee operated the machine, which then lowered a metal bar on the first employee's arm. The employee's arm was crushed.
An employee was preparing to change knives on a wood cutting machine when the moving plate struck the guard that had the knife block resting on top of it. The movement of the plate launched the knife block into the air. The block then struck the employee, causing facial injuries and broken teeth.
An employee was changing the blades on a machine and using a knee switch to hold open the pocket where the blades were located. The employee's knee slipped off the switch, allowing the blades to amputated the employee's right ring fingertip.
An employee was sharpening peeler blades when their shirt was caught in the grinding wheel. The employee sustained tendon damage and a crushed right hand.
An employee was preparing to cut lumber on a panel saw when the clamp engaged and caught the employee's left middle finger, resulting in a fingertip amputation.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 313230)
An employee was working from a ladder and adjusting a spreader guide roller with a T-handle Allen wrench. The employee came into contact with an electrical junction box/wires, was shocked, and fell off the ladder to the concrete floor. He suffered a broken right-side rib, a puncture in the right lung, and an electrical shock burn to the right palm.
On January 3, 2025, at approximately 11:35 AM, an employee was inspecting and changing spin pumps on a line. He was using an impact gun to remove the bolts when the pressure sprayed hot polymer on his head, face, and arms resulting in burns. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was doing quality control work to get the right thickness of the material. She contacted a component on a mill and sustained the amputation of four fingers on her right hand.
An employee was servicing the belt on a fan when their right ring finger became caught between the belt and pulley. They sustained amputation of the fingertip. The machine was locked out at the time.
An employee was traveling down the maintenance aisle of a warehouse on a single-pallet front rider jack. The jack malfunctioned, causing the brakes to apply; the employee fell forward onto the concrete warehouse floor. The employee suffered an injury to the left leg and was hospitalized, requiring surgery.
An employee was operating a metal roller machine to roll a small piece of metal. The employee's right index finger became caught between the metal and the machine, and the fingertip was amputated.
An employee was directing a truck driver to a dump site when the truck's peanut trailer slipped off the kingpin. As the trailer fell, a ladder attached to it lacerated the employee's ear. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was unloading a forklift from a trailer to the ground. The employee was climbing down the ladder of the trailer when their foot slipped through one of the rungs, causing them to fall backward onto the forklift forks. The employee was hospitalized for fractured ribs.