Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at J.D. Eckman, Inc., Rt. 422 East, POTTSTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA 19464
on — Amputations, avulsions, enucleations unspecified, affecting the Other finger(s) n.e.c..
Final narrative
An employee was making adjustments to a work bridge used to finish concrete deck pours. The tracks at the southern end needed to be extended. When the employee went to loosen the bolts that hold the sliding portion of the bridge to the stationary section, the sliding portion collapsed and his left middle finger was caught, resulting in a partial amputation of the finger.
Amputation Other finger(s) n.e.c. Road grading and surfacing machinery n.e.c.
A welder was working from the basket of an articulating boom lift to cut (weld) a bridge girder. The girder fell into the lift basket and pulled down the lift with the employee in the basket. The employee sustained a spinal injury and broken ribs and was hospitalized.
A crew was installing drilled micropiles alongside an outdoor covered deck foundation. The injured employee was working the front of the drill when a loose section of casing dropped onto the tip of a rig wrench and pulled the wrench down to an embedded casing. The employee's left little finger was caught between the rig wrench and the embedded casing and was amputated above the top knuckle.
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 had been cleaning the work area. While lifting a saw, the employee's index finger was lacerated by the saw blade. A tendon was cut and required surgery.
An employee was installing a hydraulic extension cylinder in a tow truck when their leg was caught between the cylinder and the truck frame. The employee was hospitalized with a broken tibia, which required surgery.
An employee was sorting sucker rods. His right hand was caught in the area where the rod hits up against the frame and his index fingertip was amputated just below the nail.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 237310)
An employee was operating a battery-powered broom to clean demolition debris off the top of the outermost bridge girder. The girder was approximately 11 feet above the demolition scaffold below. The employee fell approximately 8 feet to wind bracing below. The employee was hospitalized with a pelvis/tailbone fracture. Fall protection was in place at the time.
An employee was cleaning out an inlet pipe in a stormwater structure. The employee stepped back, fell into the pipe, and landed on concrete 13 feet below, at the bottom of the structure. He suffered a broken back.
A concrete batch plant operator was assisting with clearing spoil piles using a skid steer. The skid steer backed into a stationary screen plant. The employee's left little finger was crushed between the controls of the skid steer and the screen plant, resulting in a fracture and laceration. The employee's finger was surgically amputated.
An employee was operating a roller and paving a small pathway next to a pavilion. The ground was on a slight pitch, causing him to reach up toward the roll cage to stabilize himself. His right fifth finger was pinched between the roll cage and the rafter of the pavilion. The employee sustained a partial degloving injury with partial traumatic amputation.
An employee was working with paving equipment and heard a noise on the opposite side of the machine he was working on. When the machine stopped, the employee went to the opposite side and crouched down to investigate the noise. A mini track loader backed up and drove over the employee's leg. The employee sustained fractures to their lower leg, ankle, and foot.
An employee was walking into the motor control center (MCC) room when his right ring finger was caught in the hinge of a doorway. He sustained an open phalanx fracture, which resulted in a partial amputation above the first knuckle.
An employee was changing the spacing on a telehandler's forks. A fork slipped, and the employee's left index finger was caught between it and the mast. The fingertip was medically amputated at the first knuckle.
An employee was pulling down a broken skid with a forklift. When the employee backed up the forklift to get the forks out of the skid he pulled down, he contacted the forks of another parked forklift, fracturing both of his legs. He was hospitalized.
An employee was carrying cups back to the kitchen when her foot got caught on a cart and she fell face-first. During the fall, a piece of glass from a cup cut the inside of her mouth, severing an artery. She also sustained a laceration on her lower lip. The employee was hospitalized.