Struck by dislodged flying object, particle · Cuts, lacerations
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Lowe's Home Improvement, 1000 Nitro Market Place, CROSS LANES, WEST VIRGINIA 25313
on — Cuts, lacerations, affecting the wrist(s).
Final narrative
An employee was tossing a damaged toilet into a compactor. The toilet bounced off the compactor and lacerated the employee's right wrist, cutting an artery and tendon.
An employee climbed a racking system to retrieve decking. The employee fell through the racking and landed on the floor, resulting in a fractured right leg.
A cashier was walking to the register in the lumber department when another employee was pushing a cart with lumber and the cart struck the cashier. The cashier fell and sustained a broken left arm and a dislocated left elbow.
An employee was helping to load a refrigerator onto a customer's trailer when he tripped and fell off the trailer to the ground. The employee's right hip was broken and required surgery.
An employee was operating a drivable power stock lift machine to retrieve merchandise from the top shelf. The employee fell from the power stock lift and sustained fractures to their head and ribs.
An employee was operating a hydraulic jack to bend a frame when the jack came loose and struck the employee. They were hospitalized for a spleen injury.
A truck had been towed into the shop with a flat tire and a blown airbag. An employee checked the tire for damage and was airing the tire. The employee was installing the valve core when the bead slipped off the rim. Air escaped, and the aluminum wheel struck the employee's head and face. The employee became unresponsive and was bleeding.
On December 14, 2023, at 8:40 p.m., three employees were inspecting milling machines for startup. A few of the sleeves on the mill drum needed to be changed out. The injured employee was trying to input a sleeve on the mill drum using a hammer. The hammer hit the edge of the drum, which caused a metal piece to splinter off and strike the employee's cheek just below the left eye. The metal splinter embedded in the back of their eye socket, resulting in pain, swelling, and bleeding that required hospitalization.
An employee was pushing a line of carts into a vestibule when the door cable snapped and struck his right ankle. The employee suffered a fracture that required surgery and hospitalization.
On December 5, 2023, an employee was setting up a brake press machine when a piece of the bottom die burst and struck the employee. They sustained a laceration to the lower right side of the abdomen.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 444130)
An employee was backing up an electric pallet jack when it struck a yellow guardrail, pinning his ankle between the pallet jack and the guardrail. The employee suffered a crush injury to his left ankle and shin.
The injured employee was going to use an elevator to go upstairs. The elevator does not have a call button and is operated manually. The employee approached the elevator and used the elevator drop key located in the elevator key box to manually open the door. He then stepped forward into the elevator shaft. The elevator car was on another floor, resulting in the employee falling down the shaft from the first floor to the basement level. The employee was hospitalized with a sprained left hand and bilateral calcaneal fractures.
An employee was aligning a shipping offload conveyor. A component of the machine caught the employee's left middle finger, amputating it above the second knuckle.
An employee was using a torch to burn off liquid petroleum gas from old 100-pound cylinders so they could be recycled. When he went to move a tank, some gas spilled onto the ground, then ignited in a flash that engulfed him. He was burned on the face, hands, and back and was hospitalized.
An employee was conducting routine maintenance on a mixer. New lid pins had been installed, and the employee was rotating by hand to ensure they had been installed correctly. The employee's left middle finger was caught between the lid and top of a pin. The momentum from the mixer continued, causing a crushing injury to the finger. The employee underwent a medical amputation from the top knuckle to the tip of the finger.
An employee was climbing down a 15-foot multipurpose ladder. The employee fell about 8 feet, landing on the concrete floor and the ladder itself. The employee suffered several injuries, all on the right side: broken ribs, a broken sternum, a broken temporal bone, broken shoulder, multiple fractures to the cheekbone, and a brain bleed.
An employee was rolling up the landing gear on his trailer when the handle began to unwind and struck his face, fracturing his jaw. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.