Amputations at Work — Injury Statistics and Claims Information
Amputations at Work
Severe amputation incidents are slowly decreasing
OSHA has documented 27,837 severe amputation cases over the last decade, with the vast majority of these injuries impacting the fingers. These incidents often occur in high-speed industrial environments where precision and safety protocols are paramount.
The loss of a digit or limb creates immediate functional limitations that often persist for a lifetime. Beyond the initial trauma, workers frequently face long-term challenges with grip strength, fine motor skills, and the ability to perform essential job duties.
What's Driving the Trend?
While the 10-year trend shows a 13.7 percent decrease in reported amputations, the annual volume remains high. Persistent safety gaps in machine guarding and lockout procedures continue to drive thousands of preventable injuries every year.
Manufacturing remains the primary industry for these injuries, accounting for 55.1 percent of all severe cases. The reliance on heavy machinery like conveyors, saws, and molding equipment creates a constant risk of entanglement for workers in this sector.
How Amputations Happen at Work
Top causes based on OSHA incident reports
The most common cause of workplace amputations is becoming caught or entangled in running powered equipment, which accounts for 41.9 percent of all reported incidents. Workers are often injured during normal operation, maintenance, or cleaning when machines lack adequate safety barriers or emergency stop mechanisms.
| Cause | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Caught, entangled in running powered equipment— normal operation | 11,224 |
| 2 | Compressed between running equipment and other object(s) | 3,896 |
| 3 | Struck by rolling, sliding, or shifting objects—non-running | 2,130 |
| 4 | Struck by running powered equipment— unspecified | 1,762 |
| 5 | Struck by falling object | 1,594 |
| 6 | Injured by object handled by person | 1,340 |
| 7 | Struck by running powered equipment— during maintenance, cleaning, testing | 1,002 |
| 8 | Struck by suspended or swinging object | 719 |
Why This Matters for Your Case
Employers are strictly required to follow 29 CFR 1910.212, which mandates machine guarding to protect operators from hazards like point-of-operation contact. Furthermore, 29 CFR 1910.147, the control of hazardous energy standard, requires lockout or tagout procedures to ensure equipment is fully de-energized before maintenance begins.
Industries with Most Amputations
Where these injuries occur most frequently
Manufacturing leads all sectors with 55.1 percent of severe amputation cases, followed by construction at 10.5 percent. These industries rely heavily on stationary sawing, extruding, and conveyor machinery that can cause catastrophic injury in a fraction of a second if safety protocols fail.
High-Risk Industries and Your Rights
Employers in these high-risk industries must comply with 29 CFR 1910.217 for mechanical power presses and 29 CFR 1926.300 for hand and power tools. These regulations serve as the baseline for protecting workers from moving parts, and failure to implement these standards often constitutes a direct violation of federal safety law.
Real Incident Reports
From actual OSHA investigation files
The incident reports reveal a recurring pattern where workers are injured while performing routine tasks like clearing jams, changing dies, or operating wood splitters. These narratives consistently highlight how kinetic energy release and unexpected machine activation turn standard operations into life-changing events.
"Employees were removing a damaged uninterrupted power supply (UPS) from an audio/visual rack system. The injured employee was pulling from the front. Two other employees were pushing from the rear when they lost their grip. The UPS fell, pinching the injured employee s middle finger against the floor. The employee's fingertip was partially amputated without bone loss."
"Two employees were operating a wood splitter. An employee was loading wood into the splitter when the tip of his right thumb was crushed between the rear end of the wood and the back metal plate of the wood splitter. The employee's thumb tip was amputated."
"An employee was performing routine maintenance on an air valve when their right ring finger became caught in the valve. The employee sustained an amputation to the fingertip. "
"An employee was in training to learn how to change steel dies on a culvert machine. The employee was on top of the machine when the handheld control was activated, engaging the machine's auto-run function. The employee's feet were dragged into the roller dies, resulting in a left ankle fracture, a laceration between the ankle and knee, and amputation of the the big toe and second toe on the right foot."
"An employee was operating equipment to cut a copper pipe (20 feet in length, 2 inches in diameter) when a jam occurred between the revolver assembly and the pinch roller assembly. He assessed the jam and determined that the copper pipe needed to be cut using a battery-powered reciprocating saw. He made two cuts on the pipe with the reciprocating saw. When the second cut was finished, kinetic energy stored within the pipe due to the jam released, and the pipe struck the employee's left hand. The employee's index fingertip was partially amputated before the first knuckle without bone loss."
"A subcontracted engineer was advising maintenance how to make a modification to the embossing roll system on a new line. Maintenance was bringing the motor and gearbox down with a crane. The load shifted when it was a few inches from the ground. The engineer went to catch/maneuver the gearbox and the fingers on his left hand were crushed between the I-beam base of the gearbox and the concrete floor. A finger was amputated."
"A driver was doing a pre-trip inspection on a tractor when their fingers got caught in a fan belt and the tops of two fingers were amputated."
"An employee was working to move an oscillating fan when the guard fell off. His left hand contacted the metal fan blades, resulting in cuts to the index, middle, and ring fingers, and amputation of the little finger above the first knuckle."
"On July 30, 2025, an employee was cutting wood with a radial arm saw when the saw amputated their left middle and ring fingers."
"An employee was replacing a pop-up roller between the drop plate table and the far stacker conveyor after clearing a jam. The pop-up roller became hung up on the frame of the roller flight conveyor. The employee s hand then became caught between the pop-up roller and the belts on the drop table. The employee sustained an avulsion to their right hand excluding the fingers. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery."
Common Questions About Amputations 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.