Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Delaware Lawn Crew, LLC, 14 Stalwart Drive, NEWARK, DELAWARE 19713
on — Amputations, affecting the fingertip(s).
Final narrative
An employee was standing on a walk-behind lawn mower when the mower spun out of control. His right ring fingertip became caught in the handlebar, resulting in an amputation.
An employee was using a dozer to clear a plot of land. The dozer struck the ground after getting stuck on a tree stump, causing the employee to hit their head on the cab roof. The employee sustained a spinal compression injury.
On August 31, 2023, an employee was operating an excavator to complete a demolition job. As the excavator drove into the first floor of the building, the floor collapsed. The vehicle and employee dropped approximately 8 feet, causing the employee to sustain a back injury.
An employee was loading a bundle of 3/8-inch rebar using a standup skid loader. While transporting the load, the equipment tipped forward, throwing the employee over the controls and into the mast of the skid loader. The employee sustained several teeth avulsions, a mouth laceration, and bruising/swelling around the face.
An employee was driving a forklift to deliver lumber to a work site when the forklift tipped forward onto the forks. The employee struck his head on a metal railing on the forklift, resulting in a laceration, a concussion, and temporary loss of consciousness.
An employee was operating an excavator inside the steel mill's melt shop. The excavator drove over a piece of steel that became trapped beneath the tracks of the excavator. As the employee drove forward, the piece of steel broke the front windshield and amputated the employee's left ring fingertip.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 561730)
An employee was helping to set up a mulch blowing truck when they were struck by an oncoming vehicle. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured knee, a concussion, and a head laceration; they also received stitches on their arm.
An employee was using a table saw to cut a piece of wood when the saw cut his thumb, index, and middle fingers. His index finger was amputated and he was hospitalized.
An employee was mowing a residential lawn at a client's house. The mower slid on the land and tipped over onto him. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured vertebra in the neck and partial paralysis.
A flagger was directing traffic flow in a highway work zone. They were standing approximately 1.5 feet behind the shoulder's demarcating line, next to and slightly behind a traffic drum. As they were directing traffic into and out of the driveway of a parking lot, a car attempted to get around a truck and struck the traffic drum, which subsequently struck the employee, who was thrown 15 feet and landed on top of concrete aggregate. The employee suffered pelvic and rib fractures, T10 and L3 vertebra fractures, and internal bleeding.
An employee was troubleshooting a power washer in the field. Because there might have been water in its fuel, he brought it back to the shop and drained about a gallon of fuel from the tank into a plastic container. Some of the fuel spilled onto the floor and ignited. The employee was stomping out the fire when he lost his balance and tripped into a stool, which caused the plastic container to spill more fuel onto the fire. The employee's pants and shirt caught on fire, and he fell, abrading his knee while trying to get through the flames. As well as the knee abrasion, he suffered burns to the left leg and left lower quadrant of the torso. He was hospitalized.
An employee was backing up a tram (towing powered industrial equipment) to connect it to a trash bin. The employee's left forearm/wrist was caught and crushed between the tram and the bin. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee went to lift a carton and tripped on a different carton that was on the floor. She fell on the floor in the backroom and sustained a fractured right hip, and abrasions to her arm and knee. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.