Struck by running powered equipment during maintenance, cleaning, testing · Cuts, lacerations, punctures without injury to internal structures
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Cleveland-Cliffs Steel Corp Middletown Works, 1801 Crawford Street, MIDDLETOWN, OHIO 45044
on — Cuts, lacerations, punctures without injury to internal structures, affecting the Hand(s), except finger(s).
Final narrative
An employee was clearing a blocked scrap chute with a spud bar. The piece of stuck scrap came free and fell toward the employee and lacerating the employee's left hand between the thumb and the index finger. The employee was hospitalized.
Hospitalized Hand(s), except finger(s) Chutes
More severe injuries at Cleveland-Cliffs Steel Corp Middletown Works
An employee was operating an electric overhead travelling crane. The crane picked up four slabs of raw steel and travelled to the end of the runway. The end stops halted the crane but allowed the crane cab to contact the landing structure which in turn caused the mounting bolts of the crane to shear. The crane cab fell approximately 40 feet to the ground and the operator sustained a fractured skull, fractured vertebrae, and a laceration to the back of the head.
An employee was inspecting a jam on the high line near the blast furnace when the shuttle that operates on another line moved and struck the employee's left foot. The employee was hospitalized with fractures to their foot.
An employee was closing a chain link gate when their finger was caught between the gate rail and the roller. The employee's thumb was crushed, and their thumb was medically amputated at the tip.
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 332111)
An employee was riding on the side of a forklift. He stepped off the forklift and was struck by the back end of the forklift as it turned to the right. The forklift's back tire ran over his leg, resulting in an amputation. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was loading a nozzle, weighing approximately 500 pounds, onto a positioner. The stainless steel nozzle slipped off the positioner and struck the employee's right leg. The employee's right tibia was fractured and their left knee was bruised.
An employee was preparing a hammer and dies for operation. The ram prop was inserted in the hammer to secure the ram. While the employee went to apply grease to the die shim in the hammer, the ram moved downward. The motion dislodged the prop, causing the ram to drop and crush the employee's right hand and forearm. The employee sustained amputations to their hand and arm and was hospitalized.
An employee was doing a tool changeover on a table mill and changing the mandrel. His hands were on both wrenches with his right thumb was between the two wrenches as he worked to unlock the mandrel. The wrenches came together, crushing his thumb. The employee was hospitalized with a partial amputation of the thumb.
An employee was helping to remove tooling that was stuck in a forging press (a full-revolution mechanical power press). The press cycled, resulting in partial amputations to two fingers on his left hand.
An employee was working to deliver mail to an apartment building. She was waiting for a customer to move, to obtain clearance to the mailboxes. The door swung inward and closed on her right little finger. The top half of her finger was surgically amputated.
An employee fell from a step ladder while reaching for a tie-off point. He impacted the ground, and landed on his bolt bag which contained tools. The employee was hospitalized with fractured ribs, and a lacerated spleen and kidney.
On October 30, 2025, an employee was working to adjust a stackable metal shipping container. As the container dropped into place, it caught the employee's hands in an area between the upper and lower cross-members. The employee suffered a laceration to the left ring finger that required stitches, bruising to the right ring finger, and fractures to the right middle finger that necessitated medical amputation of the fingertip.
An employee was moving a scissor lift through a doorway. The employee was pinned between the scissor lift and the doorframe, sustained a back injury, and was hospitalized.
An employee was setting up communication equipment for a meeting. They were walking and tripped over a speaker on the ground. The employee sustained a leg injury.