Abstract: At approximately 3:10 p.m. on January 10, 2007, a mechanic at the Central Utility Plant at the University of California, San Diego campus, was lifting and removing a metal deck grate. He wanted to gain access to a compressor in the Steam Turbine pump pit in the Central Utility Plant. The grate weighed approximately 80 lbs. and was rectangular, measuring 5 ft by 7 ft. The mechanic straddled the deck grating and placed his fingers through the holes in the grate to lift it. As he lifted the grate, he caught his middle finger on it, and sheared off the tip of his left middle finger. He amputated his finger down to the end of the fingernail. The mechanic was taken to the UCSD Hospital, where they were unable to reattach his severed finger. The employee did not require hospitalization.