Caught in running equipment or machinery during maintenance, cleaning · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Penn Aluminum International LLC, 5602 E Harrison Ave, HARLINGEN, TEXAS 78550
on — Amputations, affecting the fingertip(s).
Final narrative
At about 10:15 p.m. on November 20, 2021, an employee was adjusting a belt when it was activated elsewhere. The belt moved; the belt and gear amputated the employee's right index fingertip at the first knuckle, as well as lacerating the employee's right middle finger. The employee was hospitalized, requiring surgery.
At 7:01 p.m. on June 16, 2025, two employees were pushing a saw horse with a bundle of aluminum on it when it flipped over onto the injured employee. The employee was hospitalized with a broken leg and required surgery.
An employee was using a crane to place aluminum bundles onto a trailer. The banding and wood on the bundle became caught up on the material that was already loaded, causing the banding on the bundle to break. The employee went to stop the stack from moving in the wrong direction when his left arm was caught between the bundles and fractured.
On March 18, 2022, an employee was removing a broken-off piece of aluminum from inside a machine. A limit switch closed, the machine's carriage moved forward, and the employee's arm was caught between the carriage and the die face. The employee suffered a crushed hand and a broken arm and was hospitalized.
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 331316)
At 7:01 p.m. on June 16, 2025, two employees were pushing a saw horse with a bundle of aluminum on it when it flipped over onto the injured employee. The employee was hospitalized with a broken leg and required surgery.
An employee was performing maintenance on a press puller and aligning the puller when it fell. The puller electrical panel struck their left upper back, resulting in fractures to their T12 and L1 vertebrae. The employee 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.