Caught in or compressed by equipment or objects, unspecified · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Agropur Inc., 547 West Nez Perce Ave, JEROME, IDAHO 83338
on — Amputations, affecting the fingertip(s).
Final narrative
An employee was replacing the valve stem on a pneumatic valve when the valve actuated and closed on their thumb, resulting in a fingertip amputation.
An employee was preparing for a clean-in-place (CIP) process and removed a cap from a pipe to connect another pipe. Hot water (approximately 170 degrees) splashed onto the employee, causing burns to her hands, left forearm, and both thighs.
An employee was walking near a spring-mounted valve when the valve opened. Steam was released and burned the employee's arm, resulting in hospitalization.
An employee was removing and cleaning the water filter for a cheese cooker. The employee switched over to the alternate filter and used the shutoff valve to isolate the filter before removing it. When the filter was isolated, the hot water/steam mixture built back pressure in the filter housing. When the employee removed the clamp, the hot water burst out onto the employee causing second-degree burns to their inner arms and the left side of their chest and abdomen.
An employee accessed an electrical panel to switch a breaker when they received a 480-volt electrical shock that went from their right hand to their left hand, resulting in hospitalization.
An employee was cleaning up in the packaging room when an alarm went off on the cheese knife. He went to turn around and tripped on a hose and fell backward to the floor. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured right hip.
An employee was changing mud cups in the hopper cylinders of a concrete pump truck. The cylinders moved and three of the employees fingers were amputated.
An employee was standing on the rig floor next to a polishing unit. His hand was placed on the polishing unit when the pump was lowered, resulting in amputation of their right thumb, ring, and middle fingertips.
An employee was using air to blow out the air wash to the blender and grinder station. As the employee reached to verify that the air wash was clean, the unit pinched and amputated their fingertip.
An employee was retrieving a lost drill pipe with a lifting bail when their left thumb got pinched between the table and handle of the lifting bail while trying to re-thread the pipe to lift it out. The employee suffered an amputation to the left thumb.
An employee was removing a core chuck from a stationary roll when their right ring finger was pinched between the chuck and the roll. The employee's fingertip was amputated.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 311513)
An employee was diagnosing the lack of flow of product to a powder bin. The employee removed the rotary star valve below the bin. While he was reinstalling the valve, his right middle finger was crushed between its shaft and its housing. The finger was partially amputated.
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 changing an O-ring on a pneumatic valve. The employee had placed the valve on his work cart and was applying air to open the valve and access the O-ring. After changing the O-ring, the valve closed on his fingertip, crushing it. He was taken to the hospital, where he received an amputation.
An employee was using a pike to move a pallet of sugar that was stuck in the powder racking. The employee fell backward, landing on his right leg. The employee's leg was fractured and he was hospitalized.
The injured employee was carrying totes of cheese when they tripped over another employee's foot/ankle and fell to the cement floor. The injured employee sustained six fractured ribs on the left side and was hospitalized.
An employee was diagnosing the lack of flow of product to a powder bin. The employee removed the rotary star valve below the bin. While he was reinstalling the valve, his right middle finger was crushed between its shaft and its housing. The finger was partially amputated.
An employee was standing on a multi-purpose ladder installing head flashing over a window. Their feet were approximately 6 feet off the ground and three rungs from the top. The employee lost their grip on the drill they were using and the ladder tipped over. The employee fell from the ladder to the ground, resulting in a fractured left wrist, bruised chest, and lacerations to their face and lip.
An employee was inspecting the overhead area of a single-person lift and repositioning the lift through a double doorway. As they were transitioning through the doorway, they were caught between the doorframe and the vertical mast of the lift. The employee was hospitalized with injuries to the nose, left maxillary sinus, left orbital bone, and left jaw, with fractures at the maxillary sinus area.
An employee was loading a 4-inch wooden door into a pickup truck when he felt a pop in his right side behind his shoulder blade. He was hospitalized later that day and underwent surgery, having suffered a collapsed right lung.