Caught in running equipment or machinery during maintenance, cleaning · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Pfizer Inc., 1776 Centennial Dr, MCPHERSON, KANSAS 67460
on — Amputations, affecting the finger(s), fingernail(s), n.e.c..
Final narrative
At about 3:15 p.m. on September 26, 2022, an employee was feeding units into a packaging line when the star wheel became blocked by a tipped unit. The employee's left hand was caught in the machine, and the employee's ring finger was amputated.
An employee was cleaning a circular table to prepare a rotary tablet press. He was advancing the table with the wheel when the press came down and crushed his right little finger, resulting in an amputation.
On February 11, 2019, at approximately 11:29 a.m. a flight attendant was walking from an aircraft to the fixed-base operator's building when she walked into a static wick on the wing of a Cessna airplane. The employee sustained a laceration next to the left eye resulting in five stitches and hospitalization.
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 325412)
An employee was driving a boom lift (in the lowered position) in an exterior dock area. The lift s left wheels rolled onto base plates that covered a 3-foot-deep sump pit. The base plates failed, and one side of the lift dropped. The employee's left leg was caught under the lift basket, and he suffered a fracture to the lower leg including the ankle.
An employee was walking on the sidewalk. When they stepped off the curb, they fell to the ground, resulting in fractures to their tibia, fibula, and a metatarsal.
An employee opened a flammables storage cabinet to get something out, smelled a chemical odor, and began to feel unwell and dizzy. She was hospitalized, having been exposed to formic acid from a leaking bottle at the bottom of the cabinet.
The injured employee was cleaning a pre-mix blend from a high-speed mixer. Another employee working in the same room opened the pneumatic valve for the machine. The injured employee's right forearm was crushed in the mixer when the discharge valve closed. He was hospitalized.
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.