Struck by running powered equipment during maintenance, cleaning, testing · Amputations involving bone loss
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Ascend Performance Materials Operations LLC, 518 South Bay St, FOLEY, ALABAMA 36535
on — Amputations involving bone loss, affecting the Other finger(s) n.e.c..
Final narrative
An employee was working to unclog a feeder that feeds raw material into an extruder to make plastic/polymer. The slide gate closed on his right hand, amputating three fingers between the first and second knuckles as well as cutting the thumb tip.
Amputation Other finger(s) n.e.c. Extruding machinery
A temporary employee turned off a planer machine, opened the housing, and began clearing a jam. The machine's spinning blade caught his right hand and degloved the index finger.
An employee was using a tool to remove a rag from a roll on the tube mill. The roll pulled the tool and the employee's right hand into the roll, resulting in a partial amputation of the little finger and a fracture to the index finger.
A production sanitation employee was pre-rinsing an incline conveyor and noticed cheese stuck between the belt idler. The employee went to remove the cheese and their glove got caught and pulled their left forearm into the conveyor. The employee's arm was fractured. The machine was not locked out/tagged out at the time.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 325991)
An employee was operating an overhead crane and using a hoist to lower a metal tipper bin. The tipper lowered onto their right hand, crushing their right thumb and resulting in a fingertip amputation.
An employee was unclogging a granulator when the rotor pulled his fingers in. His left index, middle, and ring fingers, as well as his right thumb, index, middle, and ring fingers were amputated. The employee was hospitalized. The machine was not guarded at the time.
On March 3, 2025, two employees were working on a blender. The injured employee was removing contaminated pellets from the blender. Another employee went to elevate a tilter that was feeding the blender when the blender auger activated and crushed the injured employee's left leg. The employee's leg was medically amputated 4" - 6" below the knee. The machine was guarded at the time.
An employee was performing maintenance on a pelletizer. When they rotated the drum, their left index finger became caught between the pelletizer blades and the bed, resulting in a fingertip amputation.
An employee was traveling down the maintenance aisle of a warehouse on a single-pallet front rider jack. The jack malfunctioned, causing the brakes to apply; the employee fell forward onto the concrete warehouse floor. The employee suffered an injury to the left leg and was hospitalized, requiring surgery.
An employee was operating a metal roller machine to roll a small piece of metal. The employee's right index finger became caught between the metal and the machine, and the fingertip was amputated.
An employee was directing a truck driver to a dump site when the truck's peanut trailer slipped off the kingpin. As the trailer fell, a ladder attached to it lacerated the employee's ear. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was unloading a forklift from a trailer to the ground. The employee was climbing down the ladder of the trailer when their foot slipped through one of the rungs, causing them to fall backward onto the forklift forks. The employee was hospitalized for fractured ribs.