Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1490080.015 - Soap Stone Sawmill Llc

Inspection Information - Office: Harrisburg Area Office

Investigation Summary

At 4:00 p.m. on August 24, 2020, an employee working as a laborer for a sawmill was working on the platform at the north timber mat jig. The jig is located at the lower western side of the 60-foot by 120-foot building. The employee was using a custom-made A-frame hydraulic-powered horizontal drill rig to drill two horizontal holes widthwise through the timbers of a timber mat under construction. A chunk of wood fell onto the rebar grate covering the floor level U-trough auger that runs between the jigs and the work platform. When the employee moved the drill rig, the drill rig hit the wood chunk and dislodged the auger's rebar cover grate over the north end of the auger. The employee noticed this but did not immediately fix the grate because the dislodged grate was on the other side of the drill rig. The employee inserted a bolt and tightened it in one of the drilled holes. Then, he went to get a chain saw to cut off an end from one of the wooden timbers in order to make it a uniform length with the other timbers. After making the cut with the chain saw, the employee took a step backwards to step back onto the work platform when he stepped into the auger where the rebar cover grate had gotten dislodged. The auger blade pulled the employee's foot under a steel framing member around the opening to the auger. The employee was hospitalized to treat a severe laceration to his right foot.

Keywords: Auger, Auger Mechanism, Caught Between, Drilling, Elevated Work Platform, Floor Grate, Floor Opening, Foot, Frame, Grate, Laborer, Laceration, Lumber, Machine operator, Pinch Point, Pinched, Platform, Pulled In, Sawmill, Steel, Unguarded