Inspection Detail

Inspection: 314054792 - Rotella'S Italian Bakery, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Omaha Area Office

Investigation Summary

At 5:30 p.m. on April 24, 2010, Employee #1 began his shift at a bakery, where he worked as a helper on an immediate proofer machine (processor). That evening he was assigned, by his supervisor, the work in the north production plant of the bakery. There he worked through the night on the processor, rotating this function with three coworkers. At 1:06 a.m., during the second rotation through the processor, Employee #1 was working on the back of the machine between the processor and the wall removing doubled up dough balls as they fell off the upper conveyor onto the lower conveyor. As he reached into the machine to remove one of the doubled up dough balls, he got his right hand caught between the sprocket and chain of the conveyor system. He was pulled into the machine. Employee #1 yelled for help, but no one responded. In an attempt to free himself, Employee #1 ripped his arm free of the machine, causing the amputation of his right hand approximately 2to 3 inches above his wrist. The bakery's Assistant Team Leader noticed Employee #1 pulling himself from the machine and contacted emergency services. Also, the facilities Production Manager and Departmental Manager in charge of the night shift, were also notified. While waiting for emergency services to arrive, coworkers assisted Employee #1 to relocate to the entrance of the facility and applied a tourniquet to try and stop the bleeding. Employee #1 was taken to the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, NE, where he was hospitalized and treated for his injury. The incident investigation attributed the accident to there being a lack of guarding on the machine, as well as a failure of the employer to train Employee #1 on amputation hazards, fall hazards, in-going nip points, emergency action plans, fire exits, tornado drills, lockout and tagout, and hazard communication (HAZCOM).

Keywords: AMPUTATED, FOOD PREPARATION, GUARD, MACHINE OPERATOR, CAUGHT BY, LOCKOUT, CAUGHT BETWEEN, HAND