Machine Injury & Accidents

Date	City	State	Employer	Body Part	Event
2021-11-04	Hillsborough	Nh	Vortex Companies - Livermore, ME	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Struck by rolling object or equipment-other than powered vehicle, n.e.c.
Two employees were moving a trailer mounted compressor by hand after disconnecting it from a truck. The two employees were pulling the trailer forward, moving closer to the back end of the original tow vehicle. As the momentum behind the trailer increased, employee 1 attempted to control the trailer by placing his hand on the trailer tongue. Employee 1's finger became caught between the towing truck's bumper and the edge of the trailer tongue. The employee' s little finger was amputated.
2021-08-11	Chicago	Il	Mariani Enterprises, Inc.	Lower leg(s)	Other fall to lower level less than 6 feet
An employee was standing on the tongue of a trailer and slipped on the wet beam. Their right foot went between two of the beams while they fell to the side, resulting in a broken lower right leg.
2021-08-07	Saint Louis	Mo	Southwest Airlines	Fingertip(s)	Struck by rolling object or equipment being pushed by injured worker
An employee was pulling and guiding a baggage cart. As he tried to attach the cart to a tug hitch, his fingertip was caught by the cart tongue and hitch. The fingertip was amputated.
2021-07-07	Solon	Oh	The Davey Tree Expert Company	Leg(s)	Collision between a moving and standing vehicle, nonroadway
An employee was operating a stand-up loader and was parallel parking the loader between a parked truck and a chipper tongue. As he was positioning the loader, his left leg was caught between the loader and the parked truck and was fractured.
2021-06-23	Saint Louis	Mo	PrimeFlight Aviation Services Inc.	Leg(s)	Fall on same level due to tripping over an object
An employee was running when she tripped over a dolly tongue and fell. She suffered a laceration above the right eye and a broken left leg. She was hospitalized, requiring surgery for the leg fracture.
2021-06-18	Savannah	Ga	Signature Aviation and Hospitality, LLC	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was connecting a ground power unit to a tow tug. While the unit was being pulled toward the tow hitch, its tow tongue contacted the tow hitch and slipped. The employee's right middle finger was pinched/crushed between the tongue handle and the hitch, resulting in a partial amputation of the finger.
2021-06-11	Rockford	Il	United Parcel Service, Inc.	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
On June 11, 2021, an employee was hooking a dolly up to a tug hitch. The employee's left middle finger was pinched between the dolly tongue handle and tub hitch. The finger was amputated.
2021-01-04	Nashotah	Wi	Lauderdale Lakes Marina, LLC	Chest, except internal location of diseases or disorders	Other fall to lower level
An employee was getting snow off of stored boats and their covers when he slipped on a patch of ice under the snow and fell on the tongue of a trailer, landing on his back. The employee suffered two broken ribs and a partially collapsed lung.
2020-09-30	Arundel	Me	Southern Maine Marine Services	Face	Explosion, n.e.c.
An employee was lowering a boat from a trailer when a battery compartment on the tongue of the trailer exploded. The employee was hospitalized for multiple facial fractures.
2020-09-25	Brooksville	Fl	United Parcel Service	BODY SYSTEMS	Exposure to environmental heat
An employee had finished his delivery route and returned to his work facility. He then began to experience heat stress and dehydration symptoms such as cramping, vomiting, and tongue swelling.
2020-08-18	West Palm Beach	Fl	Barnett Management	Leg(s)	Contact with objects and equipment
An employee was loading a trailer when the tongue of the trailer struck him, fracturing his right leg.
2020-07-30	Latrobe	Pennsylvania	Carpenters Technolongy	Leg(s)	Contact with hot objects or substances
An employee was taking a sample of molten metal when a piece of slag contacted the tongue of his boot. The employee was hospitalized with burns to his leg.
2020-07-09	Jamaica	New York	Dnata Ground Handler	Leg(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was driving a tug with a load into a warehouse. While the employee was trying to disconnect the dolly from the tow tractor hitch, the dolly brake tongue swung and struck his left knee. He suffered a broken leg and was hospitalized.
2020-07-06	Mansfield	Ohio	Brennstuhl Construction. Inc.	Fingertip(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was preparing to remove a trailer from a dump truck. The employee had unhooked the electricity and had just removed the pin to the trailer hitch when an excavator was offloaded from the trailer. The tongue of the trailer jumped off the hitch and pinched the employee's right index finger, causing a fracture, a torn ligament, the loss of the nail, and the amputation of about 3/8 inch of the tip.
2020-04-29	Austin	Texas	PGC General Contractors LLC	Fingertip(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee lifted the tongue of a generator to move it when his finger was caught/pinched between the jack and tongue. This resulted in a partial amputation of the right index fingertip.
2020-04-10	Jamaica	New York	Worldwide Flight Services, Inc.	Fingertip(s)	Pedestrian struck by vehicle propelled by another vehicle in nonroadway area
An employee was hitching two cargo dollies together. A tug struck one of the dollies creating a nip point with the trailer hitch and tongue that amputated the employee's fingertip.
2020-04-01	Fort Worth	Texas	Osburn Contractors, LLC	Fingertip(s)	Caught in or compressed by equipment or objects
An employee was attempting to move a light cart when his hand contacted the tongue of the light cart, smashing his finger and resulting in a fingertip amputation.
2020-03-26	West Plains	Missouri	DRS SUSTAINMENT SYSTEMS, INC.	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was removing bolts from a piece of machinery. A bolt got stuck; when it came loose, the employee's left index finger was pinched in a tongue and partially amputated.
2020-03-03	Olney	Texas	Ameriseal of Ohio, Inc.	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
Employees were placing front tongue load-bearing metal poles into metal stand boots. A metal pole weight slipped, and an employee's right thumb was caught between the pole base and the boot rim. It was amputated at the first joint. The employee was hospitalized and the thumb was surgically reattached.
2020-02-14	Dfw Airport	Texas	United Parcel Service	Fingertip(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was connecting two dollies. He had pulled the pin from the eyelet of one dolly and was pulling the other dolly to make a connection when his right middle finger was caught between the tongue of one dolly and the eyelet of the other dolly. The finger was lacerated between the nail and the first knuckle, and the fingertip was medically amputated.
2020-02-11	Corpus Christi	Texas	Signature Flight Support Corporation	Fingertip(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was trying to attach a ground power unit (GPU) to the rear hitch of a tug. As the employee was pulling the tongue of the GPU, his left hand was caught between it and the hitch of the tug. The employee suffered an amputation of a fingertip to the first knuckle.
2019-07-26	Angleton	Texas	Seabreeze Recovery, Inc.	Toes(s), toenail(s)	Struck by object falling from vehicle or machinery-other than vehicle part
An employee was using a ratcheting lifting device to lift the tongue of the pull-behind hydro-seeder off of the hitch of the bull dozer. Once it was off the hitch, the tongue fell and landed on the injured employee's left foot. The employee sustained crushing injuries to the left foot and toes, as well as the amputation of the fourth toe.
2019-06-20	Boise	Idaho	Pro Con Homes, Inc	Mouth	Struck by discharged object or substance
An employee was using a nail gun when a nail ricocheted off another nail and impaled the employee through the tongue and into the roof of the mouth. The employee was hospitalized.
2019-06-10	Tampa	Florida	MANHEIM REMARKETING, INC.	Multiple face locations	Nonroadway collision with object other than vehicle, n.e.c.
An employee was driving a golf cart in the lot area. The employee was returning inside the building because it started raining. There was an open metal bed trailer parked in the lot with the tongue hitch sticking out. The employee did not see the trailer's tongue hitch and hit it with the golf cart. The plastic windshield of the golf cart hit first and came off. Then the employee hit the tongue hitch with his face. The employee suffered lacerations to the face and a fractured left eye socket and
2019-04-16	Alto	Texas	Porterfield Timber Harvesting, Inc.	Fingertip(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was manually adjusting the tongue on a loader in order to place it for towing to a new logging location. The employee's finger was caught somewhere near the tongue, resulting in a fingertip amputation.
2019-04-06	Orlando	Florida	Swissport USA, Inc.	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was connecting two LD-3 containers on dollies. He was moving the rear dolly with his right hand on the dolly tongue and his left hand toward the front dolly's connection hitch when the rear dolly's ring impacted his left ring finger, fracturing it.
2019-03-09	East Boston	Massachusett	JetBlue Airways Corporation	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Struck by rolling object or equipment being pushed by injured worker
An employee was pulling a baggage cart toward a belt loader. The tongue of the baggage cart struck his right middle finger against the belt loader, amputating it at the first knuckle.
2018-09-20	Beaumont	Texas	SAIA Motor Freight	Knee(s)	Other fall to lower level less than 6 feet
An employee fell backwards while exiting from a trailer. His right knee hit the tongue-side of a dolly below, before he fell to the ground. He fractured both kneecaps and suffered tendon injuries in both knees.
2018-09-17	Jefferson	Georgia	AKA Tree Removal	Lower leg(s)	Pedestrian vehicular incident, n.e.c.
An employee was hooking up a chipper to a truck. The chipper was resting on a jack stand; the truck hit the chipper as it backed up and knocked it to the ground. As it fell from the stand, its neck/tongue hit an employee's lower leg, causing a spiral fracture.
2018-08-28	Normal	Alabama	Aramark Business Facilities, LLC	Fingertip(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was lifting a small dump trailer with a teammate. They set the trailer's tongue down on a block and the employee's right index finger was pinched between the tongue and the block, resulting in a fingertip amputation.
2018-08-24	Barksdale Afb	Louisiana	Engineering Design Technologies, Inc.	Hip(s)	Other fall to lower level less than 6 feet
An employee was standing on the tongue of a tractor trailer attempting to loosen the safety strap on a load of pipes when he fell 2 feet off the trailer to the ground and broke his hip.
2018-08-23	Sarita	Texas	IEA Constructors, Inc.	Fingertip(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was lifting the tongue of a pull behind mobile light tower when their right ring finger was pinched between the tower's tongue and the ground resulting in a fingertip amputation.
2018-08-04	Fort Stockton	Texas	Express Energy Services	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Caught in or compressed by equipment or objects
An employee was working with tongues on the drilling floor when his hand entered a pinch point and the tongues caught his ring finger, resulting in an amputation at the first joint.
2018-07-25	New Berlin	Wisconsin	Associated Bank Corporation	BODY SYSTEMS	Exposure to harmful substances or environments
While counting money, an employee had an allergic reaction to an unknown substance, suffering tongue swelling.
2018-07-13	Houston	Texas	Mitsubishi Caterpillar Forklift America	Lower leg(s)	Struck by discharged object or substance
An employee was trying to secure dunnage in a trailer using a pneumatic nail gun. He was in the process of standing up from a kneeling position when the gun's trigger was caught in his work boots. The tongue of the boots depressed the trigger, causing it to fire a nail into his right lower leg.
2018-06-18	Saint Louis	Missouri	SOUTHWEST AIRLINES	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An airport ramp agent was trying to connect a cart and hitch when his left little finger was caught between the tongue of the cart and the hitch. He suffered a bad cut and was hospitalized. He was wearing a glove at the time of the incident.
2018-05-24	New Bremen	Ohio	CROWN EQUIPMENT CORPORATION	Leg(s)	Nonroadway collision with object other than vehicle
On May 24, 2018, an employee was operating a forklift and struck a stationary coupling tongue from a material transport wagon while turning a corner, breaking a bone in the left leg. The employee was hospitalized.
2018-05-07	Melrose	Wisconsin	Allied Cooperative	Multiple body parts	Other fall to lower level less than 6 feet
An employee filled a propane cylinder on a platform and was uncoupling the hoses when he lost balance and fell approximately 3 feet from the platform, landing on the tongue of a trailer. He dislocated his right shoulder and broke six ribs, requiring hospitalization.
2018-05-04	Green Bay	Wisconsin	Sanimax USA LLC	Chest, except internal location of diseases or disorders	Nonroadway collision with object other than vehicle, n.e.c.
On May 4, 2018, an employee struck the tongue of a shipping container trailer while operating a utility vehicle, suffering two broken ribs and contusions to the mid-torso. The employee was hospitalized.
2018-04-27	Leavenworth	Kansas	DHI Roofing	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was hooking up a trailer to a truck. His left index finger was on the trailer tongue when the tongue dropped over the truck ball, catching and partially amputating his finger between the trailer and the truck.
2018-04-19	Puxico	Missouri	MINGO JOB CORPS	Foot (feet)	Struck by falling object or equipment, n.e.c.
An employee was helping to hook up a trailer when the trailer jack failed, allowing the trailer tongue to land on the employee's left foot, causing an amputation.
2018-04-08	Artesia	New Mexico	Silver Oak Drilling, LLC	Trunk	Contact with objects and equipment
An employee was making collars to go into the hole at an oil drilling rig when the drill collar tongue struck the middle part of the employee's body.
2018-03-27	Minot	North Dakota	Legacy Management, LLC	Multiple head locations	Other fall to lower level
An employee was tightening a light fixture from an A-frame ladder when he lost his balance and fell to the floor. He hit his head, suffering head and tongue lacerations that required hospitalization and sutures.
2018-02-12	Atlantic City	New Jersey	HARRAH'S ATLANTIC CITY	Head and neck	Ingestion of harmful substance
An employee was clearing a clog from a dishwasher by using his mouth to blow into the tube and swallowed some corrosive detergent. The employee was hospitalized for burns to the tongue and throat.
2018-02-01	Humble	Texas	Worldwide Flight Services inc	Lower leg(s)	Struck by object or equipment
An employee was connecting/disconnecting a dolly when the dolly tongue did not disengage properly and struck the employee's lower left leg resulting in a fracture that required surgery.
2018-01-20	Fort Worth	Texas	FEDEX EXPRESS	Knee(s)	Pedestrian struck by vehicle backing up in nonroadway area
An employee was helping a tug operator line up the tug with a dolly tongue. The employee stepped between the tug and the dolly tongue and her leg was pinned between the two pieces of equipment, injuring her left knee.
2017-07-26	Fort Worth	Texas	Texas Quality Beverage	Multiple mouth locations	Ingestion of harmful substance
An employee was conducting a taste-odor-appearance test when caustic soda that was still in the system entered her mouth, causing a burning sensation and swelling to her lips and tongue.
2017-07-26	Fremont	Nebraska	HORMEL FOODS CORPORATION	Forearm(s)	Injured by physical contact during horseplay
Two employees were engaged in horseplay on the tongue trimming line resulting in injury to one of the employees. The injured employee sustained a right forearm laceration from a knife.
2017-07-06	Pompano Beach	Florida	SOUTHEASTERN FREIGHT LINES, INC.	Fingertip(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
On July 6, 2017, at 9:30 p.m., an employee was connecting a trailer to a tractor when his left thumb tip was caught and crushed between the O-ring on the tongue and the pintle hook. His thumb tip had to be surgically amputated.
2017-06-28	Houston	Texas	SOUTHWEST AIRLINES	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was manually pulling a baggage cart, using the hole in the cart tongue to guide it to a baggage tug hitch, while a coworker was pushing the baggage cart from behind. As the baggage cart tongue came into contact with the tug hitch, the employee's left hand was caught between the tongue and hitch, amputating the pinky finger at the root of the nail and lacerating the ring finger.
2017-06-21	Lake Buena Vista	Florida	WALT DISNEY WORLD CO.	Toes(s), toenail(s)	Struck by falling object or equipment, n.e.c.
An employee was attempting to move a portable light tower for transport. She had raised four outriggers and had the connector beam (tongue) on the hitch of the truck that she was connecting the light tower to for transport when the portable light tower and the connector beam (tongue) fell onto her foot, fracturing two toes.
2017-02-14	Hastings	Nebraska	Cooperative Producers Inc.	Forehead	Struck by object falling from vehicle or machinery-other than vehicle part
An employee was setting a trailer onto a hitch when he climbed underneath the tongue to try and position it. The tongue slipped off the ball and struck him in the head. He was hospitalized with forehead lacerations.
2017-01-17	Omaha	Nebraska	PacNTrac of Nebraska	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Struck by falling object or equipment
An employee was moving a trailer when the tongue dropped and landed on his finger resulting in a partial amputation of the right ring finger.
2016-10-08	Vidalia	Georgia	Amerit Fleet Solutions Inc.	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was lowering a folding trailer tongue with a coworker when they lost control of the towing arm. The arm caught the employee's hand, severing the right thumb and partially severing the right pinky finger.
2016-09-24	Gadsden	Alabama	UHP Projects, Inc.	Chest, except internal location of diseases or disorders	Struck by falling object or equipment, n.e.c.
An employee was underneath the trailer tongue frame of a portable abrasive blasting unit, attempting to straighten a bent pin in the jack stand with a crowbar. As he pried on the pin with the crow bar, the jack fell, pinning him beneath the trailer tongue frame. He punctured his lung and broke five ribs, his sternum, and his left shoulder blade, requiring hospitalization.
2016-09-17	Marshall	Illinois	Burnsides Community Health Center	Head and trunk	Fall or jump from and struck by same vehicle in normal operation, nonroadway
On or about September 17, 2016, an employee was stepping on the tongue of a trailer to gain access to a parade float on the trailer when the tow vehicle accelerated and the employee fell to the pavement, striking their head, left hip, and right side of the back. After the employee fell to the ground, the tow vehicle continued to move forward and the trailer's tires grazed the employee's left leg.
2016-08-16	Hudson	New Hampshir	Colt Refining International, Inc.	Multiple head locations	Fall or jump from vehicle in normal operation, nonroadway
An employee was operating a forklift and suffered a seizure. The employee fell out of the forklift and struck his head on the concrete floor causing lacerations to the head and tongue.
2016-08-15	Huntsville	Alabama	National Technical Systems	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee broke the bone and lacerated his right thumb in the locking mechanism on a trailer tongue.
2016-08-02	Tallahassee	Florida	Exterior Specialties, Inc.	Multiple head locations	Other fall to lower level 11 to 15 feet
On or about August 2, 2016, at approximately 3:30 p.m., an employee was helping to install roofing underlayment when he stepped on wet membrane material and slid off the roof, falling more than 12 feet to the ground below and lacerating his head and tongue.
2016-07-10	Austin	Texas	Juan Sandoval	Wrist(s) and arm(s)	Other fall to lower level
An employee was installing a tongue and groove wooden ceiling from a scaffold when he fell off, fracturing his arm and wrist and requiring surgery.
2016-04-04	Tulsa	Oklahoma	American Airlines	Elbow(s)	Fall on same level due to tripping over an object
An employee was helping to lower an aircraft hose hoist when he tripped on a cart tongue that connects two engine cowling carts. He fractured his right elbow in two places.
2016-03-25	Houston	Texas	U Haul Company of West Houston	Hip(s)	Fall on same level due to tripping over an object
An employee was hooking up a trailer to a customer vehicle. The employee tried to step over the tongue of the trailer and tripped, landing on his left side and fracturing his left hip.
2016-02-02	Donaldsonville	Louisiana	Turner Industries	Fingertip(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was helping an aerial access driver load multiple mobile light plants that were off-rent onto an aerial access trailer. The employee was bent down in a squat position, attempting to adjust the tongue of a mobile light tower, when the aerial access driver put his back against the rear light plant and shoved it forward. The employee's index finger was caught between the transport trailer deck and tongue of the mobile light tower, amputating the left index fingertip.
2016-01-14	Sebring	Florida	ALAN JAY FORD LINCOLN MERCURY, INC.	Finger(s), fingernail(s)	Struck by object falling from vehicle or machinery-other than vehicle part
An employee was loading a truck cab on a trailer while the tongue of the trailer was being held up by a jack. While moving the trailer, the jack slipped off the trailer tongue, partially amputating the employee's right pinky finger.
2015-12-26	Orlando	Florida	Signature Flight Support	Fingertip(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee had the tip of his right middle finger pinched between the tongue of the lavatory cart and the tow hitch on the rear of the tow tug. The employee was hospitalized for surgery.
2015-12-02	Dallas	Texas	United Parcel Service	Fingertip(s)	Compressed or pinched by shifting objects or equipment
An employee was attempting to connect two dollies. The rear dolly gained momentum, causing the employee to lose control. The dolly tongue crushed and amputated the employee's right-hand ring fingertip.
2015-08-01	Hope	Arkansas	TYSON FOODS INC.	Multiple mouth locations	Exposure through intact skin, eyes, or other exposed tissue
A maintenance employee was getting a glass to rinse out his mouth after having some coffee. He immediately noticed the water tasted funny and spit out the water. A chemical sanitizer, pH+, used in the facility had back-flowed into the potable water lines and contaminated the drinking water. The employee's lips, inside of the mouth, and tongue were burned.
2015-06-02	San Diego	California	U.S. Postal Service	Knee(s)	Fall on same level due to tripping over an object
An employee was inspecting airport contractor equipment for unattended mail. She heard a noise behind her; she then tripped and fell over the connecting tongue of one of the carts. When she fell to the ground, her left knee cap was broken on impact. She was hospitalized.
2015-06-02	Houston	Texas	Dist Tech, LLC.	Multiple mouth locations	Exposure through intact skin, eyes, or other exposed tissue
An employee was delivering product(chem treat bel1544) to a customer location using a tanker truck. The employee removed a cap to the discharge line and the chemical sprayed onto his face. As a consequence, the employee had 2nd degree burns in the mouth lips and tip of his tongue. The employee was hospitalized.
2015-03-28	Sidney	Ohio	NK Parts Industries, Inc..	Multiple body parts	Fall on same level, n.e.c.
On March 28, 2015, at approximately 1:00 p.m., an employee was stepping over the tongue on a cart and fell. The employee sustained injuries to the right arm and head, resulting in hospitalization.
2015-03-18	Grand Island	Nebraska	JBS USA, LLC, Grand Island	Arm(s)	Injured by slipping or swinging object held by injured worker
An employee cutting cow tongue attempted to hang the tongue on a hook. The tongue started to fall from the employee's left hand. The employee attempted to grab it with the right hand, which held a knife, causing a left-arm laceration.
2015-03-12	Craigmont	Idaho	CHS Primeland	Multiple mouth locations	Ingestion of harmful substance
When an employee disconnected a rinse hose connection from his truck, residual ammonium hydroxide (liquid ammonia) sprayed him in the face and got in his mouth. He was wearing chemical resistant gloves, goggles, and coveralls. His injuries include a minor burn to his lower lip and a 1/2-inch white patch on the tip of his tongue.