Direct exposure to electricity greater than 220 volts · Fractures and burns
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at VTCU, CORP., 3770 POLE LINE ROAD, BLDG 37, POCATELLO, IDAHO 83201
on — Fractures and burns, affecting the Trunk and other upper extremities.
Final narrative
After a voltage test, an employee came into contact with a power transformer that was still energized with 10 kV. The employee suffered burns to fingertips on both hands, the upper left arm, and three or four places on the lower stomach. He also suffered microfractures to his upper back between the shoulder blades.
Hospitalized Trunk and other upper extremities Power lines, transformers, convertors
An employee was using a drill saw to drill key spacers. The drill caught his finger and pulled it in, severely lacerating and fracturing the fingertip. The fingertip was medically amputated to the first knuckle.
A crew was changing out a single-phase pole. The injured employee was framing the pole approximately 30 feet from the base. As they were loosening the armor rod clamp, the conductor broke and the wire fell to the ground, landing on the employee's right hand. The employee suffered electrical burns to their right hand and both knees.
An employee (a lineman) was working to restore power by installing a hand line when he contacted a high-voltage device (7,200 volts), resulting in electrical burns to his upper body and hands.
An employee was working from a bucket truck to remove a bolt from an attachment on an energized power line pole. The employee came into contact with the energized phase, resulting in an electrical shock of 7,200 volts. The employee was hospitalized. Protective gloves were not worn at the time of the incident.
On September 29, 2025, an employee was installing a fiber optic line at a residential site. His shoulder contacted the 7,600-kilowatt power line, resulting in an electrical shock. The employee was hospitalized.
Two employees exited their vehicle to assess a fully-downed power pole. The injured employee approached the downed pole to examine it more closely when their feet got caught underneath the energized phase and the ground of the pole, resulting in electrical burns to both feet.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 335311)
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.
An employee was troubleshooting a machine. He was investigating a slipping belt when it caught his left hand and pulled it into a pulley, partially amputating the tip of his thumb.
An employee was tilting a radiator in a fixture. The radiator moved in the fixture and crushed the employee's left index fingertip, causing an amputation.
An employee installed a busbar on a coil for a winding machine. The busbar hit a tension bar, causing his left ring finger to get caught between the coil and the tension bar, which pulled in the employee's glove and resulted in a medical fingertip amputation. The machine was guarded at the time.
An employee was operating a wire winding machine when their clothing was caught in a rotating component, pulling them into the equipment. The employee's right arm was fractured.
An employee was diagnosing the lack of flow of product to a powder bin. The employee removed the rotary star valve below the bin. While he was reinstalling the valve, his right middle finger was crushed between its shaft and its housing. The finger was partially amputated.
An employee was standing on a multi-purpose ladder installing head flashing over a window. Their feet were approximately 6 feet off the ground and three rungs from the top. The employee lost their grip on the drill they were using and the ladder tipped over. The employee fell from the ladder to the ground, resulting in a fractured left wrist, bruised chest, and lacerations to their face and lip.
An employee was inspecting the overhead area of a single-person lift and repositioning the lift through a double doorway. As they were transitioning through the doorway, they were caught between the doorframe and the vertical mast of the lift. The employee was hospitalized with injuries to the nose, left maxillary sinus, left orbital bone, and left jaw, with fractures at the maxillary sinus area.
An employee was loading a 4-inch wooden door into a pickup truck when he felt a pop in his right side behind his shoulder blade. He was hospitalized later that day and underwent surgery, having suffered a collapsed right lung.