Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1572106.015 - Larry Hills & Sons Excavating, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Department Of Labor, Licensing And Regulation Division Of Labor And Industry Maryland Occupational Safety And Health

Investigation Summary

At 9:00 a.m. on January 12, 2022, an employee was emptying salt from the bed of his dump truck for storage in a container for later use. The employee stated that he had to close the tailgate of the dump truck to gain open access to the auger/spreader. Once the salt is cleared from the auger/spreader, he is able to completely close the auger/spreader allowing the tailgate to swing freely. The employee is able to then unhook the tail gate chains and dump the load over top of the auger/spreader and onto the ground for transfer into the container. The employee reported that the auger and spinner had to be engaged during this process to grind up salt clumps and remove all the salt from the spreader. The employee works alone during this process and therefore there were no witnesses to the incident. The employee does not remember exactly what occured; however, he recalled he was wearing rubber gloves because the salt irritates his hands. He stated, "I don't remember, but somehow the auger grabbed my glove and pulled my arm in. There was a clump of salt and I was either trying to pound out the clump or pull it out but I can't remember why my hand was there." The employee's right arm was pulled into the auger and amputated just below the elbow. The employee also broke four ribs and incurred bruising on his right-side chest area and was hospitalized.

Keywords: Amputated, Amputation, Arm, Auger, Auger Mechanism, Broken Bone, Catch Point, Caught In, Chest, Contusion, Dump Truck, Elbow, Engineering Controls, Equipment Operator, Fracture, Glove, Guard, Hand, Lack of Engineering Controls, Landscaping, Machine Guarding, Machine operator, Partial Amputation, Pulled In, Rib, Salt Vat, Tailgate, Truck Driver, Unguarded