Inspection Detail

Inspection: 317007144 - Amick Farms Llc

Inspection Information - Office: Sc Department Of Labor, Licensing, And Regulation

Investigation Summary

At approximately 1:05 p.m. on June 4, 2013, Employee #1 of Amick Farms LLC, received an amputation of the upper left hand when her left thumb became trapped in a shackle on an automated conveyor system. Employee #1 was pulled backwards and up into the section of the re-hangar that cuts off chicken feet. Unable to get free, the 7.8125 inches cutter blade, operating at 480v and 1440 rpms, amputated Employee #1's left hand at digits two through five at the mid metacarpal level (the palm at the knuckles). Employee #1 also received deformity with soft tissue laceration and traumatic fracture on the first digit (thumb). Employee #1 then fell to the floor in front of the re-hangar. Surgical reattachment was unsuccessful. Employee #1 had been standing at the designated post surveying the chickens on both the left and right conveyor lines to intercept and remove any unwholesome birds from the lines. There are 150 chickens on each line per minute as the line ran 100 feet per minute. Employee #1 would also re-hang a chicken's leg (referred to onsite as a one legged bird) if it was not in the shackle as it went past. The 10 to 15 (units unspecified) of shackle line where the accident occurred traversed through the area at a height approximately 68 to 77 inches off the ground. Employee #1's working area was approximately 6 feet wide and approximately 12 feet long from the front to back. The start (back) of the re-hanger was where the cutter blade rode on the backside of the paw wheel (about 70 inches to the ground); the paw wheel is 27.75 inches in diameter and operating at 480v & 1730 rpms. The working area (front) where the 85 gallon discard cans and observation point were stationed. Employee #1 was standing approximately 9 feet from the Re-Hangar when Employee #1 hung a one legged bird back in the shackle on the conveyor. Employee #1's left thumb became trapped under the weight of the bird. The conveyor, moving at 100 feet per minute, gave Employee #1 little time to attempt to free her thumb. Employee #1 ducked below a guide bar, a stainless steel rod approximately 1 inch thick and about 6 inches below the cutter where the chicken feet enter a paw wheel to avoid a potentially serious head or neck injury. At this same juncture behind Employee #1, there was a small black stop button (about the size of a quarter, approximately 30 inches away and 56 inches to the ground) in a box mounted on a post facing the opposite direction of the operation. Flailing attempts by Employee #1's right arm to try and stop the conveyor were unsuccessful. Employee #1 was unaware if this was a stop button. A pole mounted stop button located directly in front of the employee at the entry to the cutting area was not available. There were no other e-stop devices available. Upon arrival for the investigation, it was discovered that management had installed a body bar styled e-stop immediately after the accident and prior to the next shift start-up. Other areas of the facility, where employees were exposed to the hazard of getting their finger caught in the shackle had already been provided with emergency stop buttons or e-stop cables years before this accident occurred. It took approximately six seconds for the employee to get caught in the machine and for the amputation to occur.

Keywords: FRACTURE, CAUGHT BY, THUMB, LACERATION, CONVEYOR, HAND