Fall or jump from vehicle in normal operation, nonroadway · Fractures
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at U.S. Postal Service, 4000 109TH ST., DES MOINES, IOWA 50395
on — Fractures, affecting the lower leg(s).
Final narrative
An employee was operating a ride-on pallet jack near a loading dock. The pallet jack drove over an uneven surface, causing the pallet jack to eject the employee onto the floor. The employee suffered a broken lower right leg.
An employee was walking back to a carrier case with mail in her hand when she tripped over a tub. Her back overarched as she fell, resulting in a fractured back that required hospitalization.
An employee delivered a package. On her way back to her vehicle she was attacked by two dogs that came from around a corner. She was hospitalized with dog bites.
On September 29, 2025, a rural mail carrier was delivering parcels to a business when she tripped on a parking stop block in front of the business. She fell to the ground and sustained fractures to her left hip and pelvis. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.
An employee was working to remove a stuck strap from a tray line while on an A-frame ladder. They fell 6 to 8 feet to the concrete floor, resulting in a head contusion and fractured ribs that required hospitalization.
An employee was operating a forklift to move panels around the dock area when the vehicle struck a joint where the two floors meet. The employee lurched forward and struck his head on the steering wheel. The employee then fell from the vehicle and sustained a dislocated disc in their back, requiring hospitalization.
An employee was standing inside a semi-trailer when the driver of the semi-trailer pulled away, causing the employee to fall backward and strike their head on a steel dock plate. The employee suffered a skull fracture, a fractured L1 vertebra, a broken coccyx, a laceration/abrasion to the head, and a brain bleed.
An employee was riding an ATV, catching up with a stray cow to return it to a pen. The ATV tire struck a hole or other obstacle, causing the employee to be ejected and fall to the ground. His leg was broken and he was hospitalized.
An employee was driving a van in reverse when they fell out of the vehicle and landed on the ground in the parking lot. The employee sustained a fractured left hip.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 491110)
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 was waiting for an operator to bring mail over to a mail sorting machine when she became pinned between the machine and a stack of pallets being pushed by a powered industrial truck (PIT). The employee suffered bruising and swelling on her hips, lower back, knees, and left side; a puncture wound to her left thigh from a machine screw; a crushed right hand with numbness and tingling; numbness to the left big toe; and a right wrist sprain.
An employee was walking back to a carrier case with mail in her hand when she tripped over a tub. Her back overarched as she fell, resulting in a fractured back that required hospitalization.
An employee delivered a package. On her way back to her vehicle she was attacked by two dogs that came from around a corner. She was hospitalized with dog bites.
On September 29, 2025, a rural mail carrier was delivering parcels to a business when she tripped on a parking stop block in front of the business. She fell to the ground and sustained fractures to her left hip and pelvis. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.
An employee was walking to the back door of the post office when they slipped on the icy ground due to freezing rain and fell. The employee sustained a torn rotator cuff in their right shoulder and a fractured right hip.
An employee was on top of an APC to access a radio on a shelf when they slipped and fell to the ground. They sustained three fractured ribs, a fractured right scapula and right clavicle, a knot on top of their head, and a laceration to their left leg.