How often these injuries happen
OSHA recorded 701 severe cases involving beams, rods, and blocks over the last decade. These incidents most frequently result in fractures, which account for 33 percent of all reported injuries in this category.
The severity of these accidents is often extreme, as the weight of these objects frequently leads to permanent damage. Fingers are the most commonly affected body part, suffering 35 percent of all recorded injuries from these structural components.
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Check My BenefitsHow these injuries happen
Injuries involving beams, rods, and blocks are most often caused by falling objects, which account for 48 percent of all reported incidents. You are frequently struck when these materials shift during installation, drop from overhead staging, or collapse due to improper securing. In other cases, you suffer crushing injuries when your hands or limbs are caught between heavy materials and stationary equipment during assembly.
| Cause | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Struck by falling object | 327 |
| 2 | Struck by propelled object or substance | 104 |
| 3 | Compressed between running equipment and other object(s) | 79 |
| 4 | Struck by propelled, falling, or suspended object— unspecified | 29 |
| 5 | Injured by object handled by person | 25 |
| 6 | Struck by suspended or swinging object | 23 |
| 7 | Struck by rolling, sliding, or shifting objects—non-running | 17 |
| 8 | Caught or wedged between objects— nonrunning | 15 |
Where injuries happen most
Manufacturing leads with 47 percent of all recorded incidents, followed by the construction industry at 31 percent. These sectors rely heavily on the manual handling of structural components, where a single failure in rigging, communication, or mechanical support can lead to immediate and life-altering injuries.
Real cases like yours
Common patterns in these reports involve you performing manual installation or removal of structural supports without adequate mechanical assistance. Many incidents occur when materials are pushed into place, dropped from overhead, or shift unexpectedly while being disconnected. If any of these scenarios sound like what happened to you, an attorney can help you review the specifics of your incident to determine if employer negligence contributed to your injury.
| Year | State | Industry | Incident summary | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | OH | Manufacturing | "Three employees were installing a transfer rail in a press. There were two employees holding the rail and the injured employee was at the end of the rail guiding the rail into the bracket. The task was done manually with no mechanical equipment. The employee had their finger at the end of the rail and went to make sure the rail was lined up while the other two employees pushed it into the bracket, causing their finger to become pinched between the rail and bracket. The employee's middle fingertip was amputated. Protective gloves were worn at the time of the incident. " | |
| 2025 | WI | Professional Services | "On July 29, 2025, an employee was removing a bolt from a metal racking beam. The beam fell, and the employee's hand was crushed between the beam and a pallet of bricks. Two of the employee's fingers were amputated." | |
| 2025 | VA | Manufacturing | "An employee was installing wooden staging planks when they were struck in the leg by a staging plank. The employee was hospitalized with a severe abscess and required surgery. " | |
| 2025 | FL | Construction | "An employee was disconnecting joists when a joist fell and his right little finger was caught between the joists, resulting in an amputation." | |
| 2025 | TX | Construction | "The injured employee was collecting 2x4s to build concrete forms on the bridge bent above. A 4x6-foot section of wood dropped from above and struck the injured employee. They sustained multiple spinal fractures in the upper and lower back and fractured ribs." | |
| 2025 | TX | Manufacturing | "An employee was separating a bundle of steel channel using a lifting device. While the employee was inserting a piece of wood dunnage between the pieces of material, the load shifted. This caused the steel channel to come down and pinch the employee's index finger, leading to a partial amputation of the fingertip." | |
| 2025 | TX | Manufacturing | "An employee was removing the rigging from a mount channel that was resting on stands approximately 8 inches above the ground. The mount channel fell when the rigging was removed, striking the employee's leg and fracturing it." | |
| 2025 | AL | Manufacturing | "An employee was cutting 6-inch round stock (steel) in a horizontal scissor-style band saw. A 16-inch long cut piece was being manually repositioned for lifting when it shifted. The piece caught the employee's left middle and ring fingertips against the frame of the band saw. The employee's middle fingertip was amputated. They also sustained a crushing injury to their ring finger and loss of a fingernail." | |
| 2025 | LA | Construction | "Three employees were working to lift/tilt a steel beam to remove a cable that was underneath. They tilted the steel beam approximately 2 inches. When they let the beam down, the injured employee's right hand was caught under the beam, resulting in partial amputation of the index finger." | |
| 2025 | DE | Manufacturing | "On July 14, 2025, an employee was walking down a ramp next to a pallet grinder after dumping a bin of pallet pieces into it. A 3-foot board flew out of the grinder and struck his head when he was about 12 feet away from the machine. He suffered cuts to the forehead and face and was hospitalized." |
Source: OSHA Severe Injury Reports. Narratives are verbatim from filings; identifying details may have been redacted by OSHA.