Caught in running equipment or machinery during regular operation · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Range Generation Next LLC, 118 13 st, VANDENBERG AFB, CALIFORNIA 93437
on — Amputations, affecting the finger(s), fingernail(s), unspecified.
Final narrative
An employee was securing material to a hydraulic vise on a band saw. The vise closed, pinching his left index finger and causing a partial amputation.
On November 15, 2023, an employee was exiting an external door when a gust of wind abruptly pushed the door open, pulling the employee to the ground. The employee hit the side of their head against the pavement, resulting in a head and ear drum injury.
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 541330)
An employee was working to free a load by grabbing and shaking the live side of a tugger line. Once the load became free and progressed upward, the employee's hand was caught and pulled into a snatch block. The employee's right thumb was broken and lacerated. The employee was hospitalized and required a surgical amputation.
An employee was operating a drill rig when when their hand got caught between a 1/4-inch steel cable and a drill rod, resulting in the amputation of four fingers.
An employee was overseeing the operation of a rope being respooled onto the drum of a wire winding machine. He went to remove a piece of wooden reel from the rope. His glove got snagged and his right hand was pulled into the roller, pinching his fingers between the machine's roller and the rope. The middle and index fingers were crushed.
An employee was visiting a patient's home to fit them with a wearable cardiac defibrillator. As he was walking from the front door to his car, a large dog broke free from a chain and attacked him. He was bitten on the forearm and fell. The patient was then able to restrain the dog. The employee was hospitalized with severe dog bites and required surgery.
An employee tripped over a junior I-beam about 4 feet long and 6 inches tall that was installed for circulating water valves and fell to the ground, resulting in a broken right-side rib.
The injured employee was assisting a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) enforcement operation. During an apprehension, officers returned fire at a subject and struck the employee with a bullet. The employee sustained a gunshot wound to their right hand.
The injured employee was assisting in the disassembly phase after a radar array had been lowered and secured. The crew began removing load bearing pins from an overhead crane to free the radome. A load bearing pin was stuck. The injured employee went to remove the pin manually as a second team member applied pressure from the opposite side. The pin unexpectedly released and struck the injured employee s right thumb, resulting in partial amputation of the distal phalanx including an open distal phalanx fracture and nail bed laceration.
At about 3:10 p.m. on October 3, 2025, an employee was inspecting a car. Two dogs that had been in another car were leashed and tethered to a bollard. As the employee inspected the first car along with a narcotics detection dog, one of the other dogs came loose and attacked the narcotics dog. The employee was separating the dogs when the other dog bit his left ring finger. The last joint of the finger was injured and part of it was bitten off.
An employee was preparing a bundle of green onions for chopping. While holding the bundle in his left hand, he made his first cut using a 9-inch kitchen knife held in his right hand. The knife contacted the tip of his left thumb, resulting in an amputation of approximately 0.5 inches of the thumb that required hospitalization.