Abstract: On October 31, 2004, Employee #1, a machine operator, tried to clean the heated roller of a Santaspread 120 fabric folding machine (com. Nr 4442, CH 9555 Tobel, year 1997) with a piece of fabric, using his left hand, which became caught at the nip point between the belt and the roller and resulted in his left thumb amputation. Additionally, his hand palm skin was peeled off, and the hand was pressed hard. In this machine, the fabric to be folded was passed through two rollers. The upper rubber roller was 5 inches in diameter and was in contact with a belt and a lower steel roller, which was heated by steam. This lower roller was 15 inches in diameter. The employee did not use the lockout/tagout program while cleaning the moving roller. He was first treated in the employer's clinic at Anaheim West Medical Center and later in the UCI Medical Center, where he stayed overnight.