Caught in running equipment or machinery during maintenance, cleaning · Amputations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Aroostook Trusses, Inc., 655 MISSILE STREET, PRESQUE ISLE, MAINE 04769
on — Amputations, affecting the fingertip(s).
Final narrative
An employee walked across a saw and oiled the saw chain. While he was walking back across the saw, his hand contacted the guard. His finger went between the guard and entered the chain resulting in amputation of the fingertip.
An employee was moving a wall panel. The employee's right little finger was caught and crushed between the panel and a metal table. The finger was amputated.
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 321214)
An employee was spreading out wood on the live feed table. As he was operating the automatic feed saw, and the wood went in crooked and he went to straighten it. His left middle fingertip was crushed between the wood and the computer monitor. The employee's fingertip was amputated without loss of bone.
An employee was working on a conveyor belt in the chipper room that was not functioning. While inspecting the uncovered gearbox, the conveyor system started. The employee sustained an amputation to their right little finger. The conveyor system was not locked out at the time.
An employee was walking on a truss table when he lost his balance and fell approximately 3 feet to the floor. The employee sustained a dislocated and fractured left ankle.
An employee was placing trusses on conveyor rollers to be stacked. The rollers could not roll the trusses, so the employee pulled the trusses onto the rollers. One of the spinning rollers caught their hand, resulting in three fingertip amputations.
An employee reached down to pick up a box next to a roller conveyor. His gloved left hand was caught in the chain and pulled into the sprocket. Three fingers were injured: the middle and index fingers were cut to the bone, and the ring finger was amputated at the nail.
A crew was installing drilled micropiles alongside an outdoor covered deck foundation. The injured employee was working the front of the drill when a loose section of casing dropped onto the tip of a rig wrench and pulled the wrench down to an embedded casing. The employee's left little finger was caught between the rig wrench and the embedded casing and was amputated above the top knuckle.
Two employees were working to change a tire on a mobile slasher saw. The slasher weighs around 2,000 pounds and is towed. Employee 2 was lifting the saw while the injured employee was placing a block of wood under the frame for support. The slasher then lowered onto the block and the injured employee's left thumb was crushed between the slasher frame and the wood block, leading to an amputation at the first knuckle.
An employee was using a crane to move a 44-foot, 3,343-pound I-beam. As the beam was moving west, it straightened out (north to south), beginning to swing south toward the northwest corner of a building. The crane then sent the beam southward, directly toward the corner of the building. The beam caught the tips of the employee's left index, middle, and ring fingers against the building. The last joints of the middle and ring fingers were amputated, and the last joint of the index finger was partially crushed.
An employee was standing on a step stool, removing the nuts and bolts from the frame of a solar panel that was being replaced. The employee's cheek made contact with a connector with damaged insulation. The employee was shocked, briefly lost consciousness, and fell to the ground, suffering an injury to the left shoulder.