Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 1 Medical Center Drive, CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA 26301
on — Fractures, affecting the knee(s).
Final narrative
An employee was walking a patient to their car. The employee lost their footing and fell on the parking lot sidewalk fracturing their knee. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was exiting the building following the completion of their shift. The employee slipped and fell on a sidewalk that was covered with snow and ice. The employee sustained three fractures to their right ankle. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.
The injured employee was pulling supplies from primary storage for distribution. A second employee entered the room and spilled the contents of two 1-gallon jugs of reagent methanol (95%) onto the employee.
An employee was carrying items from their car into their office and fell in the parking lot after stepping on a patch of grass, resulting in a fractured left hip.
An employee was pulling on a bale of corrugated cardboard boxes that were on a conveyor. The straps on the bale failed and the employee fell to the floor. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery for a fractured femur and/or hip.
On December 27, 2023, an employee was delivering mail to an apartment complex when their knee gave out and they fell to the ground. The employee was hospitalized with a left tibia fracture.
An employee was walking to the inventory cage when her ankle gave out and she fell to the floor. The employee sustained a femur fracture and was hospitalized.
An employee was dislodging a pallet that was stuck when boxes of product fell onto them, causing them to fall to the ground. The employee suffered a fractured femur.
An employee was walking down a hallway when they stepped on a small puddle of liquid and fell backward onto their left leg, resulting in a broken left femur.
An employee was on a 10-foot ladder replacing a fan motor on an HVAC system. While removing the guard to facilitate maintenance, the guard slipped. As the employee tired to grab it, their left hand fingers were caught between the belt and pulley resulting in a partial amputation of the little finger and fractures and lacerations to the middle and ring fingers.
An employee was using a fire escape when he slipped on the stairs that were wet due to rain. The employee fell down several stairs, hit his head, and injured his right hand.
Three employees were working on a steam pipe. They had depressurized the line and cut it. As they were preparing to replace the broken pipe section, one of them was struck by pressurized hot water and/or steam, which burned his right arm, chest, and back. He was hospitalized.
An employee was pushing a cart when they stopped to assist someone. As they turned around, they fell backward down the stairs with a box and hand truck landing on top of him. The employee was hospitalized and sustained rib fractures, a hematoma, and a compression fracture/spinal injury.
An employee was conducting routine maintenance on a mixer. New lid pins had been installed, and the employee was rotating by hand to ensure they had been installed correctly. The employee's left middle finger was caught between the lid and top of a pin. The momentum from the mixer continued, causing a crushing injury to the finger. The employee underwent a medical amputation from the top knuckle to the tip of the finger.
An employee was climbing down a 15-foot multipurpose ladder. The employee fell about 8 feet, landing on the concrete floor and the ladder itself. The employee suffered several injuries, all on the right side: broken ribs, a broken sternum, a broken temporal bone, broken shoulder, multiple fractures to the cheekbone, and a brain bleed.
An employee was rolling up the landing gear on his trailer when the handle began to unwind and struck his face, fracturing his jaw. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.