Accident: 201150463 - Eye Injured When Grinding Wheel Shatters

Employee #1, a part-time worker, was using a high-speed air sander as a portable hand-held grinder when the attached charger-type 27 abrasive grinding wheel failed and shattered. Since sanders do not have a safety guard, pieces of the wheel were not contained and a fragment pierced Employee #1's full face shield, striking his nose and right eye. Paramedics rendered first aid and transported Employee #1 to the Palo Verde Hospital; he was subsequently transferred to Loma Linda Medical Center for further treatment. Employee #1 was not wearing basic eye protection under the face shield, as required. As a result, he suffered permanent damage to his right eye.

sanding machine, grinder, ppe, equipment failure, flying object, struck by, abrasive wheel, eye, portable power tool, work rules

Accident: 201110079 - Injured When Abrasive Wheel Explodes

Employee #1, of Emco Fluids Systems, Valencia, CA, set up a grinder on a lathe and put an approximately 2 to 2.5 in. diameter abrasive wheel on it. He started the wheel and then went to get a cup of coffee. The wheel spun for approximately 5 minutes. When he returned, he moved the lathe; the wheel exploded without his even having touched it, fragmenting into pieces. A flying piece of the wheel struck Employee #1 on the upper left cheek near his eyes; if he had not been wearing safety glasses, he would have lost an eye. Employee #1 sustained a deep laceration and was taken to Henry Mayo Hospital in Valencia. He was referred to a plastic surgeon and received treatment immediately in the office of the plastic surgeon. At the time of the accident, the tool post grinder upon which the wheel was being operated was spinning at 36,000 rpm, but the abrasive wheel was rated by the manufacturer for a maximum of 8,275 rpm. Also, the wheel was not protected by a hood or by a guard.

grinder, lathe, abrasive wheel, struck by, flying object, face, laceration, unguarded, rotating parts, work rules

Accident: 892588 - Thigh Injured When Struck By Pieces Of Wheel

Employee #1 was grinding down a crack in a trash bucket with a high-speed, hand-held grinder. The 1/4 in. abrasive wheel exploded, sending pieces of the wheel into Employee #1's upper left thigh. He sustained cuts, lacerations, and bruises, and was taken to Howard County General Hospital, where he underwent surgery.

struck by, grinder, laceration, unguarded, leg, abrasive wheel, flying object, disintegrated, construction, grinding wheel

Accident: 170830533 - Struck In Head By Exploding Drum

An automobile body repairer was using a pneumatic abrasive cutting tool to cut the lid from a 55-gallon container. The drum was labeled "lacquer thinner", and flammable liquid warnings had been placed on the drum by the manufacturer. The drum exploded after a cut of about 1 inch had been made in the 23-inch-diameter container. The employee was apparently struck in the head by the lid. (Investigation after the accident revealed that the container end, dented and smeared with blood stains, had separated from the drum. Polycarbonate glasses were found with the injured employee.) The injured employee was hospitalized for several days, but died of the massive head injuries he had received as a result of the explosion.

drum, flammable vapors, abrasive wheel, explosion, head

Accident: 170722045 - Injured While Buffing Piece Of Metal

At 9:00 a.m. on May 13, 1995, Employee #1, a 30-year-old finisher with more than four years of employment, was buffing a piece of stainless steel on the wheel of a Vanguard buffer. The wheel pulled the part out of his hand, amputating his right little finger and fracturing his right clavicle. Employee #1 failed to use the special tool provided at the work station for holding the part while using the buffer. His actions violated the employer's written safety rules.

steel, work rules, abrasive wheel, struck by, amputated, finger, fracture, collarbone, extension handle

Accident: 170185318 - Fingers Damaged By Abrasive Disc

Employee #1, of Peter Carlson Enterprises, Sun Valley, CA, was sitting on a stool directly in front of the table of a disc sander. He was holding a 5 by 6 in. steel plate in his right hand. The palm of his hand was on the top part of the steel plate and his fingers were on the side of the plate close to the sanding disc. The edge of the steel Employee #1 was sanding was pulled and wedged into the gap between the sanding disc and the edge of the table, causing the plate to snap upward and flat against the sanding disc. Employee #1's fingers were wedged against the abrasive disc. He suffered skin and ligament damage to his index and middle fingers and was hospitalized for five days.

caught between, finger, skin, work rules, abrasive wheel, struck against, abrasion

Accident: 788778 - Arm Lacerated By Grinder'S Abrasive Wheel

At 7:00 p.m. on June 1, 1994, Employee #1, of Varicast, Inc., was working as a grinder in a cleaning room. He was using a pneumatic straight grinder, which had been placed in a vise to keep it stationary. He apparently reached over the grinder and his shirt sleeve became entangled in the abrasive wheel, which severely lacerated his arm.

grinder, laceration, arm, clothing, entangled, guard, abrasive wheel, work rules

Accident: 14533376 - Killed When Struck By Abrasive Wheel Piece

At approximately 9:30 a.m. on June 1, 1994, Employee #1 was mounting a guard on a homemade abrasive wheel machine. When he started the machine, the wheel shattered and one piece penetrated his abdomen. Employee #1 was killed.

struck by, abdomen, puncture, abrasive wheel, flying object

Accident: 170066336 - Fingertip Amputated By Grinder

Employee #1 was helping to install electrical equipment and additional mounting material was needed to complete the task. The employee went to the maintenance shop to get the needed piece of Kendorf. He cut the Kendorf with a cut-off saw. The cutting operation left a 3/4 in. by 6 1/4 in. long burr on the inside that had to be removed with the pedestal grinder. He placed the material on the work rest of the Black & Decker 10 in. grinder and had de-burred one end when the abrasive wheel grabbed the material. Because the gap between the work rest and the wheel exceeded 1/2 in., the burr sliced and amputated his left index fingertip. Employee #1 had not been trained to adjust the work rest to within 1/8 in. of the wheel or the tongue guard to within 1/4 in. An 8 in. abrasive wheel was used on a 10 in. grinder and the right side was equipped with a wire brush.

grinding machine, abrasive wheel, laceration, amputated, finger, untrained, inexperience, work rules

Accident: 740514 - Thumb Tip Pinched, Later Amputated

At 7:30 p.m. on February 28, 1993, Employee #1 was attempting to grind a piece of 1 in. by 1/4 in. by 6 in. flat stock on a bench grinder. Just as he began grinding the stock, his gloved hand was pulled downward between the tool rest and the abrasive wheel, causing the tool rest to break apart. When he took his glove off he saw that the flesh had been peeled from his left thumb tip, apparently from getting pinched between the tool rest and the flat stock. He was taken by his supervisor to Colesa Hospital where he was treated and released. He underwent surgery two days later at Gridley Hospital, where a portion of the bone was removed to repair the wound. As of this date, Employee #1 is still off work and has had about 1/2 in. of his left thumb amputated.

thumb, amputated, glove, caught by, grinder, abrasive wheel, work rules

Accident: 170702922 - Wrist Cut By Wheel Of Operating Portable Grinder

Employee #1, of American National Can Co., was standing approximately 12 ft up on a ladder. The employee, who is right-handed, was cutting angle iron with an air-powered die grinder with a 3 inch cut-off wheel. The wheel caught the cut and twisted into Employee #1's left wrist, lacerating tendons, nerves, and arteries. The employee reports a residual numbness and significantly diminished grip capacity of his left thumb and index finger. The wheel was unguarded and Employee #1 was not wearing a face shield. The peripheral speed of the wheel was in excess of 18,000 sfpm.

grinder, abrasive wheel, wrist, caught by, laceration, unguarded, ppe, work rules

Accident: 170209324 - Abdomen Lacerated By Fragments Of Sanding Wheel

Employee #1 was using a pneumatic sander to sand paint off a Malibu Grand Prix when the clay wheel disintegrated. He was struck in the abdomen by flying fragments of the sanding wheel and hospitalized with lacerations.

struck by, laceration, disintegrated, sanding machine, abdomen, abrasive wheel, flying object, equipment failure, unguarded

Accident: 170716369 - Injured When Struck By Flying Abrasive Particle

At approximately 7:50 a.m. on June 16, 1992, Employee #1 was attempting to cut an 8 ft long by 4 in. deep by 11 in. wide pilaster (a stucco-covered, wire-reinforced styrofoam column) with a cut-off saw fitted with an abrasive wheel. When the employee started his cut, the wheel exploded and a piece of the wheel struck him in the right forearm. Employee #1 was transported to UCD Medical Center in Sacramento, where he was admitted for treatment.

struck by, flying object, abrasive wheel, saw, equipment failure, arm