Caught in Machinery at Work — Injury Statistics and Claims Information
Caught in Machinery at Work
A sharp rise in annual incident reports
Federal data identifies 5,070 severe incidents where workers were caught between running equipment and other objects. These events frequently lead to amputations and fractures, with fingers being the most commonly affected body part in 86 percent of all reported cases.
The physical impact of being caught in machinery is often catastrophic, frequently requiring emergency surgical intervention. Because these injuries involve high-force compression, they often result in permanent loss of function or complex reconstructive needs for the hands and limbs.
What's Driving the Trend?
While long-term data shows a 92 percent decrease over the last decade, recent year-over-year reporting indicates a 60 percent increase in incidents. This trend suggests that safety protocols regarding machine guarding and material handling are failing to keep pace with current operational demands.
Manufacturing and construction sectors account for over 60 percent of all reported cases. These environments rely heavily on cranes, industrial vehicles, and raw metal materials, which are the primary sources of entanglement and crushing hazards for workers.
Injury Types from Caught in Machinery
Top causes based on OSHA incident reports
Caught-in incidents typically occur when workers are positioned between moving machinery and stationary objects or when body parts enter the point of operation. Common scenarios involve assisting forklift operators with heavy loads, performing maintenance on gantry cranes, or clearing jams in threading and stamping machines. Metal materials and industrial vehicles are the most frequent sources of these injuries, often pinning workers against guardrails or structural components.
| Injury Type | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amputations, avulsions, enucleations | 3,896 |
| 2 | Fractures | 512 |
| 3 | Traumatic injuries or exposures— unspecified | 381 |
| 4 | Cuts, lacerations, punctures without injury to internal structures | 128 |
| 5 | Severe wounds or internal injuries and other injuries | 49 |
| 6 | Injuries to internal organs and major blood vessels | 28 |
| 7 | Bruises, contusions | 18 |
| 8 | Intracranial Injuries | 8 |
Why This Matters for Your Case
Employers are legally required to protect workers under 29 CFR 1910.212, which mandates that machine guarding must be provided to protect operators from hazards created by point of operation, ingoing nip points, and rotating parts. Failure to implement these physical barriers or to enforce lockout-tagout procedures under 29 CFR 1910.147 constitutes a direct violation of federal safety standards.
Industries with Most Caught in Machinery
Where these injuries occur most frequently
Manufacturing leads all sectors with 42 percent of reported caught-in incidents, followed by construction at 18 percent. These industries involve high-speed machinery and heavy material movement, creating environments where even a momentary lapse in equipment guarding or communication can lead to severe crushing injuries.
High-Risk Industries and Your Rights
In high-risk industries, employers must adhere to 29 CFR 1910.212 for machine guarding and 29 CFR 1926.1400 for crane safety to prevent workers from being pinned or caught. These regulations require employers to conduct thorough hazard assessments and ensure that all moving parts are shielded from human contact during operation and maintenance.
Real Incident Reports
From actual OSHA investigation files
Reported incidents reveal a recurring pattern of workers being injured while assisting heavy equipment operators or performing routine maintenance near moving parts. These stories frequently involve fingers being crushed between metal sheets and feeding rails, or workers being pinned by cranes in elevated workspaces, highlighting the critical need for clear communication and physical separation between personnel and machinery.
"A temporary employee was helping a forklift operator by holding metal sheets to steady them as they were placed on a rail for feeding to a stamp machine. The operator lowered the forks with the blanks (weighting approximately 750 pounds). The temporary employee's right index finger was caught between the metal and the feeding rail. The finger was crushed and partially amputated through the bone."
"An employee was performing maintenance work on two gantry cranes located on an elevated trestle rail system. He was performing his work from the basket of a scissor lift that was positioned between the cranes. One of the cranes moved southward, pinning the basket and the employee against the other crane. The employee suffered three broken ribs on his left side and a lacerated kidney, resulting in hospitalization."
"An employee was assisting a forklift operator with dumping trash into a trash compactor when the forklift crushed his right-hand fingers against a guardrail. The employee's little finger was partially amputated."
"An employee was using a pipe threading machine to thread a 2-inch diameter gas pipe during the rebuilding of a gas meter. The pipe was in a vise mounted on the back of the crew truck. A few pieces of metal chips or shavings caused the threading machine to jam. The employee started to back the pipe up, but it jammed in that direction as well. While reaching to pull the handle back up into place to try and start again, the machine rotated about an inch and pinched his middle fingertip against the edge of the truck s back step. The employee's fingertip was partially amputated without loss of bone."
"An employee was placing a support block onto a truck bed to provide support for a unit of material. A forklift that was lowering a unit of lumber onto the truck bed crushed the employee's little finger, resulting in the amputation of most of the distal phalanx of the finger."
"An employee was working with a pallet bagger, trimming excess corrugate off a tray. The load was raised on a lift table. The scrap being trimmed activated the lift table's photo eye, causing the table to lower. Its frame pinched the steel toe of the employee's left boot between a bracket and the concrete. The employee suffered fractures in the left foot and was hospitalized."
"An employee was ascending in an aerial lift. He was pinned between the lift's control panel and the hull of a ship, suffering injuries to the liver and spleen."
"An employee was ascending the wind tower when their right arm was caught between the lift and the ladder. The employee sustained a right elbow injury and was hospitalized. "
"An employee was emptying bulk bags/sacks of lime into a lime pit. A sack fell into the lime pit. The employee was directing an excavator to pick it up when the excavator struck the employee, fracturing their left ankle against a concrete barrier."
"An employee was operating a battery extractor for a powered industrial truck and was grabbing the battery when the mass from the extractor pushed back. His right middle fingertip was pinched between the battery and the extractor resulting in amputation at the first knuckle."
Common Questions About Caught in Machinery Claims
The ClaimsBoost Research Team aggregates official government data to help workers understand workplace injury trends and their coverage options.
ClaimsBoost is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. ClaimsBoost is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to any government agency. Performance scores, rankings, and statistics displayed on this site are calculated by ClaimsBoost using publicly available government data from OSHA severe injury reports. Individual results may vary. Nothing on this site should be construed as legal advice or a guarantee of benefits. If you need legal help, we can connect you with licensed attorneys in your area.Some written content on this page was created with the assistance of AI to help interpret and explain the data. AI can make mistakes — all content has been reviewed for accuracy, but we encourage you to verify any information that is important to your situation.