Inspection Detail

Inspection: 120310842 - Mexicana Supermarket

Inspection Information - Office: Van Nuys District Office

Investigation Summary

At 9:40 a.m. on October 15, 2003, Employee #1 was working as a meat cutter in the meat department of Mexicana Supermarket. He was using a band saw to cut a large piece of meat called a "Chamorro." According to Employee #1, there was a gap on the table of the band saw where a small table contacts a large table. The gap, about the width of a small finger, would open and close and could not be controlled. This gap caused the skin of the meat to be caught, and the meat was turned around. The saw continued to pull the skin of the meat, causing the meat and his hand to turn into the blade. Employee #1 amputated the second (index) and third (middle) fingers of one hand down to the last joint. He was hospitalized. A coworker did not corroborate Employee #1's claim that the gap was uncontrollable. The coworker said that the gap was about 1.5 inches wide, and that this width helped in cutting the bone and meat. Other employees at the table were cutting or packing meat. The saw involved in the accident is a Butcher Boy band saw manufactured by Lasar Manufacturing Co., Inc., in Los Angeles, CA. Employee #1 was an employee of the employer.

Keywords: AMPUTATED, FOOD PREPARATION, FINGER, MEAT SLICING MACHINE, CAUGHT BY, SAW, BLADE