Struck by running powered equipment during maintenance, cleaning, testing · Amputations involving bone loss
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Koch & Company Inc., 1050 SE Republican Avenue, TOPEKA, KANSAS 66607
on — Amputations involving bone loss, affecting the Other finger(s) n.e.c..
Final narrative
An employee was feeding boards into a six-head molder. The employee opened the machine to clear a small piece of wood, and their right index finger contacted a moving blade. The finger was amputated at the lower knuckle. The machine was running at the time of the incident.
HospitalizedAmputation Other finger(s) n.e.c. Boring, planing, milling machinery n.e.c.
A temporary employee turned off a planer machine, opened the housing, and began clearing a jam. The machine's spinning blade caught his right hand and degloved the index finger.
An employee was using a tool to remove a rag from a roll on the tube mill. The roll pulled the tool and the employee's right hand into the roll, resulting in a partial amputation of the little finger and a fracture to the index finger.
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.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 336310)
An employee was pushing automotive suspension material using a material rack. The material started to shift and caught the employee's right little finger, crushing it. The employee suffered an amputation to the finger. The finger was re-attached.
An employee was assembling the gearbox of a lower unit (of a boat motor). They used a handheld electric drill to power the lower unit's gears and inspect the assembly. A gear was out of tolerance, so the employee placed sandpaper in the gearbox to remove any burrs or other material. The employee activated the drill and their left middle finger contacted a nip point between the gears in the unit, resulting in a fingertip amputation.
An employee was reaching for a label and stepped onto a metal piece along rollers and slipped. His leg went down into a gap between the machines and contacted the metal in the gap between the rollers. The employee was hospitalized with the avulsion of skin on his left shin between the ankle and knee, as well as injuries to muscle and ligament.
On June 10, 2025, an employee was driving a forklift west when they were struck by another forklift driving south. The suffered a puncture wound on the right calf.
An employee had just moved a large coil of steel next to another coil on a rack using an overhead crane. They unhooked one side of the sling and held onto it with their right middle finger. As they were raising the crane back up, the sling hung up under the coil, building tension; once it released, it quickly jerked the other side of the sling through the coils along with the last joint of the employee's right middle finger. The finger was amputated to that joint.
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.