Inspection Detail

Inspection: 300778842 - Lithographix Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Long Beach District Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 6:15 a.m. on November 19, 2000, Employee #1 and #2 were preparing a printing press for the processing of paper. They began with the feeding and positioning of the paper within the rollers of the press. Employee #2 feed the paper into the rollers, while Employee #1 waited for the paper to proceed through the rollers. As the paper emerged from the rollers, Employee #1 seized the paper with his right hand. Employee #2 then initiated the rollers of the press to rotate forward; however, the rollers rotated in reverse pulling the right hand of Employee #1 into the machine. Using his left hand, he hit the emergency stop button of the press stopping the machine and pulling his hand free. The rollers crushed the fingers and partially amputated the medial finger of his right hand. He was transported to a medical clinic for treatment. Employee #2 located the tip of his finger and placed it into a bag with ice. At the medical clinic, doctors reattached the tip of his distal medial phalanx and treated the other injures of his right hand, including abrasions and fractures. Furthermore, he underwent subsequent surgeries and physical therapies for his reattached phalangeal tip and for increased dexterity in his right hand. As for the cause of the machine's failure to operate properly, its software was determined to be the contributing factor, which was consequentially repair by technical personnel from the manufacturer of the machinery.

Keywords: PRINTING PRESS, AMPUTATED, FINGER, ROLLER--MACH/PART