Struck by running powered equipment during maintenance, cleaning, testing · Amputations involving bone loss
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Huntington Alloys Corporation, 3200 Riverside Drive, HUNTINGTON, WEST VIRGINIA 25705
on — Amputations involving bone loss, affecting the Other finger(s) n.e.c..
Final narrative
An employee was adjusting the tension on a grinder belt when three of their fingers got caught in the belt and pulley and were amputated.
Amputation Other finger(s) n.e.c. Grinders, abraders
More severe injuries at Huntington Alloys Corporation
An employee was moving a forging round to another rack in the extrusion department while an overhead crane was moving an upright I-beam used to separate the rounds on the racks. The I-beam was bumped, causing it to spin on the rigging. A sharp edge on the I-beam lacerated the employee's leg, requiring stitches and hospitalization.
An employee was operating a metal rod straightener when the machine caught his shirttail. As he tried to free the shirt, the machine caught and fractured his left arm. He was hospitalized.
An employee was assisting with maintenance on a mini mill when he tripped/slipped on a mill sled track and fell to the ground, injuring his lower back. He was hospitalized.
On March 1, 2017, at approximately 3:00 a.m., an employee was injured while visually checking a belt drive in the Thistle Area. A jam had occurred in the crusher. The machine was locked out, the jam was cleared, and the machine was started back up. The employee gained access to a catwalk and knelt down to check the tightness of the belt drive when his knee made contact with a piece of metal causing him to react by throwing his hand out. His gloved hand made contact with the unguarded, moving belt drive resulting in a fracture and amputation of the left ring fingertip.
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 331491)
An employee was cutting a metal square on a hydraulic shear when his left hand got caught between the metal and the shear block. The employee's middle finger was amputated.
An employee was uncoupling railcars while the cars were in motion and a car ran over her left lower leg, resulting in crush injuries and amputation below the knee. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was working to remove a piece of wood that was jamming a transfer conveyor at the shredder. He used a tool to clear the jam, then reached to grab the wood. His sleeve got caught in the conveyor and his right arm was pulled into the pulley. The employee was hospitalized with an open fracture and a crush injury/laceration to his right forearm. The machine was running at the time.
An employee was carrying a box of felt insulation weighing less than 20 pounds when he tripped and fell to the cement floor. The employee sustained a fractured right femur.
An employee was conducting routine maintenance on a mixer. New lid pins had been installed, and the employee was rotating by hand to ensure they had been installed correctly. The employee's left middle finger was caught between the lid and top of a pin. The momentum from the mixer continued, causing a crushing injury to the finger. The employee underwent a medical amputation from the top knuckle to the tip of the finger.
An employee was climbing down a 15-foot multipurpose ladder. The employee fell about 8 feet, landing on the concrete floor and the ladder itself. The employee suffered several injuries, all on the right side: broken ribs, a broken sternum, a broken temporal bone, broken shoulder, multiple fractures to the cheekbone, and a brain bleed.
An employee was rolling up the landing gear on his trailer when the handle began to unwind and struck his face, fracturing his jaw. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.