Abstract: At 2:30 p.m. on September 3, 2021, an employee working as a woodworking machine operator for a lumber wholesalers had just finished jointing the face of a walnut wood board. The employee was using a Powermatic Model PJ1696 jointer machine on the 97-?-inch-wide by 11-inch-long by 2-?-inch-thick wood board. Since it was such a large piece, the employee required help from a coworker. The coworker, a manager, helped the employee set the board up to the jointer working on the feeding side of the jointer. The coworker was feeding the board through the jointer as the employee guided the wood. When the board's length started to shorten, the coworker moved to the receiving side of the jointer to catch and support the board as it moved through the jointer. The employee then moved into the position where the coworker was and kept feeding the board through the jointer. They discovered that the spring on the guard had been broken for 1 to 1 ? years and would not fully close to stay in contact with the wood board. When the employee was guiding the board with his left hand and feeding it with his right hand, his left pinky finger was caught by the knives. The employee was hospitalized to treat a finger amputation.