Fall to lower level from collapsing structure or equipment 6 to 30 feet · Fractures
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Ecolab Inc., 1200 Market St, GALVESTON, TEXAS 77550
on — Fractures , affecting the Elbow(s).
Final narrative
An employee was removing bees while standing 6-7 feet up on a telescoping ladder when the ladder slipped and they fell to the concrete pavers below. The employee was hospitalized with an open fracture to the left elbow that required surgery.
On August 29, 2024, at approximately 1:00 a.m., an employee was cleaning out the air pump and hoses that were used for a chemical solution. The air pump was on while boil-out chemicals (hot water with caustic chemicals) were in the tank. As the employee turned to close the drain valve on the tank, the hose disconnected from the pump and sprayed the employee with the boil-out liquid. The employee received second-degree burns to their left hand, their left leg (from knee to ankle), and the back of their right leg. They were hospitalized to treat the burns.
An employee was traveling forward on a stand-up electric forklift. As the employee passed through a forklift door and attempted to make a right turn and the rear of the vehicle fishtailed into a pallet rack, resulting in a laceration to his left little finger and injuries to his left ring and middle fingers.
An employee parked his work vehicle in a customer's parking lot when a robber approached the employee with a gun and asked for his money and wallet. The robber started shooting; the employee sustained gunshot wounds to the neck and hand.
An employee was changing out a pump in a waste water treatment plant. The pump was pressurized and when he disconnected the hose, it sprayed peracetic acid in the employee's face, resulting in chemical burns.
An employee was helping to seal a grain storage bunker to prepare for fumigation. He was using a battery powered nail gun to fasten plastic sheeting on the side of the bunker when the nail gun misfired and a nail struck the employee in the left side of the chest, resulting in a puncture wound.
An employee was delivering materials. He was doing his pre-delivery inspection on the roof of the jobsite (a warehouse) when he fell through a plexiglass skylight. He landed on his feet on the concrete floor 14 feet below. The employee sustained fractures to his spine, left ulnar/radius, and right heel. The employee required surgery.
An employee was climbing a ladder to inspect a vent in a restaurant dining area. The ladder slid out on the floor and the employee fell approximately 12 feet onto the ladder and the floor. He was hospitalized with a dislocated shoulder and a back injury.
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 assembling a baker type scaffold. He was beginning to transverse down the scaffold, approximately six feet off the ground, when the scaffold tipped over and he fell. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured femur.
An employee was working from an extension ladder, installing a security camera. The ladder fell out from under the employee, who fell to the ground 12 feet below and broke his right femur.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 424690)
An employee was servicing a bypass feeder system. The system released hot water onto the employee, resulting in first- and second-degree burns to his face, chest, right arm, and both hands.
An employee was cleaning a formic acid hose with water when formic acid splashed his right shoulder, both arms, and his face under his face shield. He was hospitalized.
A driver had just climbed out of a truck. He stepped back to close the door and his foot went into a low spot on the ground. He fell backward onto an incline, rolled, and suffered a compound fracture to the wrist. He was hospitalized, requiring surgery.
An employee was walking between two tanks when he stepped into a sump pit that was missing its metal grate. His leg was submerged in sulfuric acid, and he suffered chemical burns to the lower part of his right foot. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was delivering pool chemicals from a tanker truck when the pipe connection broke. The employee sustained chemical burns from the sodium hypochlorite.
After cutting a slab of beef short ribs, an employee turned to grab the pieces he had cut and his right hand contacted the saw blade. The employee sustained an amputation to his right index finger.
An employee was unloading a carpet pad from a truck when they fell from the truck dock to the concrete below, resulting in five fractured ribs and an injury to their left lung.
An employee was walking up a walkway to enter a building through the back entrance when she tripped over the lip of the cement ramp. The employee fell and sustained a fractured right hip.