Refuse Materials, Inc.

An employee was working to pull open the stuck door of a concrete slurry container. The door sprang open and struck the employee in the lower jaw, causing a laceration and fracture to the jaw.

An employee was helping to set up skates to move a gondola. The bar slipped off the rack and the gondola leg fell and crushed the employee's right index finger, resulting in amputation at the first knuckle.

Three employees were polishing the concrete floor in the back break room and were overcome with carbon monoxide (CO) from the compressor that was used in that room. One employee was hospitalized for CO poisoning.

Employee 1 was investigating a gas odor. While employee 1 was checking the equipment, a gas explosion occurred, resulting in a fire that burned the employee's face. Employee 2 entered the area and a second explosion occurred, causing burns to their face and arms. Employee 2 was hospitalized.

During fiberglass work, an employee mixed a methyl ethyl ketone peroxide (MEKP) catalyst with a cobalt chemical that they thought was a dye. A chemical reaction occurred, resulting in an explosion. The employee sustained second-degree burns on his back and a blister on his right arm.

At about 7:30 p.m. on August 12, 2025, an employee was using a backhoe to excavate accumulated slag and debris from a furnace tap area and ladle pit. Residual water in the material had not fully evaporated; upon disturbance, it reacted violently, resulting in an explosion. The employee suffered first, second, and some third-degree steam burns, mainly to the arms and knees with additional burns to the hands and the back of the neck. The employee was hospitalized.

An employee was cutting glass for a custom windshield and was using denatured alcohol during the cutting process. The denatured alcohol caught fire and the flame traveled to a gallon-sized container of the liquid. The can exploded and the employee sustained second- and third-degree burns from the waist up.

On April 18, 2025, an employee was cutting the lid off an empty 55-gallon drum using a plasma cutter. The drum originally contained a flammable liquid and residual liquid inside the drum ignited and exploded. The employee was hospitalized with burns to the face, chest, and arms.

An employee was mixing self-leveling cement when his hand was caught in a mixer. He suffered a partial amputation to his left middle finger, as well as a laceration to his buttocks.

An employee was working to pull open the stuck door of a concrete slurry container. The door sprang open and struck the employee in the lower jaw, causing a laceration and fracture to the jaw.

An employee was stepping backward through a framed wall when they tripped over the base metal track and fell to the ground, resulting in a broken arm.

An employee fell off a 5-gallon bucket and an exposed pipe lacerated his bicep. The employee was hospitalized.

An electric crew was unloading a lighting instrument rack (approximately 400-500 pounds) from a box truck when one of the wheels rolled off the lift gate and the rack tipped over, falling onto the injured employee's right leg. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured tibia and required surgery.

An employee was checking a pole-type transformer tank for leaks. A hydraulic clamping device was lowered onto his right thumb and crushed it against the sharp edge of the bottom of the tank. He suffered a partial transphalangeal amputation to the thumb.

The injured employee was standing behind a table. She jumped out to scare another employee, but tripped and fell on the tile floor, injuring her right ankle/foot. She was hospitalized with a dislocated ankle that required surgery.

An employee was going into a trailer to mark product for shipment and the trailer pulled away from the dock. The employee fell out of the trailer, contacted the dock plate, and then fell to the ground. The employee was hospitalized with a punctured lung, fractured ribs, and contusions.

An employee was hooking up bundled tie-downs with a chain. While he was holding a hook, the other hook was unlocked. This caused the employee's hook to slide down and pinch his right index finger between the chain and the shackle. He suffered an amputation to the fingertip (without bone loss), as well as an open fracture.

An employee was operating a gas tugger to lift metal sheeting. His left hand was pulled into the pulley, which crushed his left thumb, resulting in avulsions and other tissue damage. He was hospitalized and required surgery.