Abstract: At approximately 5:00 p.m. on March 3, 1995, Employee #1, of Pendleton Flour Mills, Pendleton, OR, was removing a wire rope hook attached to two empty railroad cars that were being pulled by a Timber Jack skidder. The skidder operator stopped to allow slack so that Employee #1 could unhook the wire rope from the railroad cars. When the cars rolled past the skidder, the slack in the wire rope snapped taut and slammed him against the car, fracturing his ribs. The railroad cars began to drag the skidder around and the wire rope flipped over the rear tire, allowing enough slack for it to become unhooked from the cars. The wire rope then recoiled and struck Employee #1 a second time. He was transported by ambulance to St. Anthony's Hospital and was later transported to the Oregon Medical Center in Portland.