Caught in running equipment or machinery during maintenance, cleaning · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at VVF Kansas Services LLC, 1705 Kansas Ave., KANSAS CITY, KANSAS 66105
on — Amputations, affecting the fingertip(s).
Final narrative
An employee had been grinding flashing for recycling. The employee was clearing a jam in the grinder and amputated his left index fingertip on the grinder's blade.
An employee was cleaning the flights of the rotary valve. He manually moved one flight to reach another flight to clean it. His hand slipped and slid past a sharp edge that cut through his cut-resistant glove and amputated his right index fingertip.
An employee was working on the product fill line when the product injection needle injected into the employee's hand, wrist, and arm, requiring hospitalization. The injection needle was guarded at the time.
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 325611)
An employee was using an electric pallet jack to retrieve a chemical tote from a staging lane. He inserted the pallet jack under the tote and began to back up. After moving backward for approximately 15 feet, the employee tripped on a collapsible tote. As he fell, the pallet jack ran over his left foot. His ankle was lacerated and his foot was fractured.
An employee was installing network infrastructure at a client's distribution center. He was transporting a box measuring approximately 23 inches by 12 inches to a truck yard and walking along a narrow path adjacent to a trench that measured approximately 5.5 to 6 feet deep, 10 to 12 feet long, and 18 to 24 inches wide. Gravel on the path shifted beneath the employee's foot, causing him to lose balance and fall into the trench. He landed on his left side and struck a 4-inch PVC conduit pipe located at the bottom of the trench. The employee was hospitalized with fractures to his fourth, fifth, and sixth ribs on the left side.
An employee mixed sodium hydroxide pellets into a 55-gallon drum of hot water. A chemical reaction occurred and mixture splashed out of the drum, causing burns to the employee's face and neck. Personal protective equipment was not in place at the time.
An employee was cleaning a centrifugal pump. As he was cleaning a nozzle, his hand was caught in the inlet of the pump. He suffered a partial fingertip amputation.
A line leader was crouched down observing the chain and sprocket on a carpet filling machine for maintenance or repair when another employee got his right index finger caught between the chain and sprocket. Skin and the fingernail were removed and the employee required surgical amputation of the fingertip to the first knuckle.
An employee was working to remove a product blockage from a piece of equipment. The employee was struck by a metal bar near the deck of the pin mixer equipment and sustained blunt force trauma to the torso.
An employee was moving a rack onto a lower conveyor in the south heat treat area when their finger got caught between the part tray and the rollers, resulting in a fingertip fracture and amputation.
An employee was climbing a ladder to get on top of the breakroom. The ladder slipped, causing him to fall to the ground. The employee sustained fractures to his upper back, left foot, and ankle.
Two employees were removing a circuit breaker. The injured employee was using wrenches in the removal process. One of the wrenches contacted an adjacent door, resulting in an arc flash. The employee suffered burns to their neck, face, and ear, as well as momentary vision loss due to the flash.
An employee bent over to pick up a rubber mat from the ground. When he grabbed the corner of the mat, a rattlesnake hidden under it bit his left middle finger near the first knuckle. He was hospitalized.