Collapse, engulfment building or structure · Fractures
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at VITAL LINK, INC., Ebbing Air National Guard Base, FORT SMITH, ARKANSAS 72901
on — Fractures , affecting the Pelvis.
Final narrative
An employee was on a ladder taking measurements of a wall when the wall moved and fell on the employee and the ladder, resulting in a fractured pelvis.
An employee was found on the concrete floor on his back unresponsive on 4-15-2020 at 4:00 PM. He had a bump on the back of his head and was hospitalized for a brain bleed.
On September 5, 2025, an employee was installing gang plates on a structure when the side walls fell and hit her head. She then fell onto her back and the side wall pressed her to the ground, resulting in hospitalization due to an ilium fracture and a transverse process fracture on the right side.
Employees were chipping concrete/brick to separate a building for demolition when the wall collapsed and debris fell onto the employees, resulting in hospitalization of two employees. One employee sustained a fractured left femur and a head injury, and the other sustained a severe head injury.
On June 11, 2025, employees were completing the installation of flashing and waterproofing material at the base of an existing masonry wall. The wall gave way while the employees were working on it and three employees were injured by falling brick and mortar. Two employees were treated and released. The third employee sustained fractures to both arms, a blunt force injury to the face, and a partial amputation of their right little finger. The third employee was hospitalized.
Two employees were standing under a mobile fall protection gantry span while it was being adjusted. While the security bolts were being removed, the adjustable legs began to spread, causing the main beam to fall and strike the employees on their heads. Both employees sustained blunt force trauma and lacerations to the tops of their heads.
An employee was overseeing the feeding of chicks in the chick hatchery. The feed piping became clogged, causing it to spill over onto the ceiling. The ceiling collapsed and struck the employee. The employee sustained broken vertebrae and a broken femur.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 332312)
On October 21, 2025, an employee was operating a saw when a pneumatic clamp caught their right middle finger. The employee suffered a partial amputation to the finger.
An employee completed an end cut on a metal shim and started transferring the metal shim from the saw conveyor to two saw horses in the area. The employee set one end of the shim (7 feet long x 8 inches wide, weighing 218 pounds) on one of the saw horses, then slid the other end onto the other saw horse and the shim fell from the first saw horse. The employee's left index fingertip was pinched between the saw horse and the shim, resulting in a skin avulsion. The fingertip was amputated later.
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 moving steel beams with an overhead crane when the bundle struck a bollard and became unstable. As the employee reached to stop the material from shifting, his thumb was pinched in-between the beams, resulting in a partial amputation.
An employee was rigging a steel joist to be lifted by a crane. The joist fell and pinned the employee against the concrete ground. The employee sustained fractures to multiple ribs, his right arm, right tibia, and an open fracture to his right ankle, as well as a dislocated right hip.
An employee was operating an ironworker (steel punching/shearing) machine. A piece of the tooling broke off and struck the employee's neck; a fragment was lodged in his neck. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.
On October 25, 2025, an employee was stringing up a new reel of tire tread on a machine. The employee pulled a 6-inch tail and proceeded to spool up the liner. As the machine was jogged to begin the liner wrapping process, the liner caught the employee's glove and pulled their right arm into the liner, causing a fracture to the arm.
An employee was doing a cable change on top of an electric overhead traveling (EOT) crane. They were positioned between the cable drum and the drive shaft. While rotating the cable drum, the employee reached for the new cable that was to be installed. The grease fitting on the drive shaft caught their fall harness and pulled them underneath the drive shaft. The employee was pinned between the drive shaft and two pieces of angle steel, resulting in a fracture to their left hip.
On October 5, 2025, an employee was pulling a pressure washer hose when it it disconnected from the cooker. The employee was struck by jets of high-pressure water, resulting in lacerations to their left thigh requiring surgery. The employee was hospitalized.