Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Wausau Tile Inc., 9001 Business Hwy 51, ROTHSCHILD, WISCONSIN 54474
on — Amputations, affecting the fingertip(s).
Final narrative
In a precast concrete production building, an employee was handling a fiberglass mold used to cast a concrete double waste container. The mold was cured and ready to be popped/separated. As part of this process, the employee covered the holes inside the mold to prevent air from escaping. Air was then pushed into the mold to release it from the product. When the mold let go from the casted product, it amputated both of the employee's index fingertips.
On October 5, 2023, an employee's fingers were in the holes of a concrete planter. When air was applied to the planter to release the plug, the planter dropped. The employee's left and right index fingertips were caught between the concrete planter and the plug and were amputated.
On August 10, 2023, an employee was checking tags on pallets he was about to package for shipping. After checking the tags, the employee stood up, turned, and started walking. They were struck by a moving forklift and sustained a broken right femur requiring hospitalization.
On April 2, 2019, an employee was cutting garbage can tops with a jamb saw. The saw jammed and went out of control, lacerating the employee's wrist. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was operating a forklift and unloading a truck. After the truck was unloaded, the employee got off the forklift and proceeded to adjust the dock plate with a hook tool. The dock plate slipped and the employee went to adjust the plate with their hand when their left middle finger got caught. Their finger was amputated above the first joint.
An employee was rotating a carbide granulator blade when his finger was caught between the blade and a stationary part of the machine. The employee's right middle finger was partially amputated and they suffered an avulsion to the right ring fingertip.
An employee was using a CNC metal lathe machine in manual mode to check that the thread blocking tool made contact with the jaws. As the employee was manually spinning the spindle, his index fingertip was crushed between the spindle's jaws and the grooving insert, resulting in a fingertip amputation.
During a material handling operation, an employee's fingertip was caught under an air conditioning unit as the unit was lowered onto a cart. The employee's fingertip was amputated.
An employee was removing a bolt from a tractor hub when their right index finger was caught between the hub and the frame. The employee's fingertip was crushed and the employee was hospitalized.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 327390)
An employee was stacking concrete blocks for a concrete bunker. As a block was swinging into place, the employee's left leg was pinched between two blocks, resulting in injuries to his left heel and lower leg.
An employee was patching precast concrete. He fell from a concrete wall support to the ground due to wind. He was hospitalized with fractures to his left ankle and right knee.
An employee was cutting wood on a table saw when the wood got jammed. While clearing the jam, the wood moved forward and his left index and middle fingertips were amputated.
The injured employee was assisting five other employees with bracing a wall panel that was being stood up. Another employee slipped on frost on the floor surface. The employees went to evacuate the area in anticipation of the wall panel falling over. The injured employee went to jump through a window opening within the wall panel and their lower half was crushed by the falling wall panel. The employee sustained a fractured pelvis.
An employee was using a vertical band saw to cut a thick piece of rubber material. While being cut, the material shifted, causing the employee s right hand to contact the moving blade. The employee's thumb was amputated below the knuckle. The employee was hospitalized, undergoing surgery.
A production sanitation employee was pre-rinsing an incline conveyor and noticed cheese stuck between the belt idler. The employee went to remove the cheese and their glove got caught and pulled their left forearm into the conveyor. The employee's arm was fractured. The machine was not locked out/tagged out at the time.
An employee was on a ladder, taking measurements for a new gutter installation. The ladder slipped out from under him and both he and the ladder fell to the ground. He was hospitalized with seven broken ribs and a broken clavicle.
An employee was unloading a truck for a delivery job. While moving boxes in the truck, the employee tripped over a pallet and fell out of the truck to the ground, resulting in four broken ribs.