How often these injuries happen
OSHA recorded 23 severe incidents involving drums, pulleys, and sheaves over the last 18 months. These accidents frequently result in amputations, which account for 61% of all reported cases in this category.
The severity of these injuries is compounded by the high concentration of damage to your hands and fingers. Because these components often operate under high tension, you may suffer permanent loss of function or traumatic tissue damage.
How these injuries happen
Injuries typically occur when you become caught or entangled in running powered equipment during normal operation, which accounts for 26% of these incidents. This often happens when a cable or rope binds in a spool, or when you attempt to guide a line while the winch is under load. These incidents are frequently caused by inadequate machine guarding or the failure of equipment to stop automatically when a foreign object enters the nip point.
| Cause | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Caught, entangled in running powered equipment— normal operation | 5 |
| 2 | Struck by propelled object or substance | 4 |
| 3 | Struck by falling object | 3 |
| 4 | Struck by propelled, falling, or suspended object— unspecified | 2 |
| 5 | Struck by running powered equipment— during maintenance, cleaning, testing | 2 |
| 6 | Entangled in non-running object | 2 |
| 7 | Struck by running powered equipment— irregular movement, kick back | 1 |
Where injuries happen most
Manufacturing and construction industries each account for 22% of these severe incidents. In these environments, heavy-duty winches and cable-pulling equipment are essential for daily operations, but they also present significant entanglement hazards if safety guards are missing or if maintenance procedures are not strictly followed.
Real cases like yours
Common patterns in these reports involve you guiding cables or ropes into spools and pulleys when the line suddenly shifts or binds. These incidents often occur during routine tasks like pulling wire or repositioning lines, where a momentary lapse or equipment malfunction leads to rapid entanglement. If any of these scenarios sound like what happened to you, an attorney can help you review the specifics of your incident.
| Year | State | Industry | Incident summary | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | FL | Information | "An employee was pulling inner duct from one handhole to another. The shackle on a winch cable contacted the cable sheave's roller block. The employee released tension on the winch cable and lifted the cable to guide the shackle over the lip of the handhole. As he re-engaged the winch, his left index fingertip became caught between components in the winch's retrieval wheel. The fingertip was amputated between the last knuckle and the nail." | |
| 2025 | PA | Construction | "An employee was working to remove an obstruction and free a winch cable that was caught. The cable was still under the load of the probe casing. As the employee pulled the cable free, the weight of the casing caused the winch line spool to tighten around their hand. Their index and little fingers were caught and cut by the cable including tendon damage. The employee was hospitalized." | |
| 2025 | WI | Manufacturing | "On June 6, 2025, at approximately 9:33 PM, a maintenance employee was placing the chain back on a drive wheel of a shackle line when the chain hoist/come along he was using detached from its anchorage point. His right little finger was crushed between the chain hoist/come along and the guard for the drive wheel. The employee sustained an open fracture and partial amputation to the finger." | |
| 2025 | NY | Utilities | "An employee was assisting with an operation that was pulling in an underground wire. The employee was guiding a rope through a capstan when their gloved right hand was pulled into the capstan for approximately 1/3 of a rotation. The employee's right index fingertip was crushed and surgically amputated to the first joint." | |
| 2025 | TX | Construction | "Two employees were lifting a radio antenna up the tower using a winch when the rope got bound up in the spool of the winch. They were repositioning the spool of rope when the winch began to take the rope more quickly and pulled the injured employee's left hand that was holding the rope into the winch. The employee's left middle and ring fingers were injured and the little finger was broken." | |
| 2025 | TX | Mining | "An employee was on the floor of a workover rig to install an electric submersible pump when rig blocks fell and struck them, resulting in seven broken ribs and a lacerated finger." | |
| 2025 | AL | Transportation & Warehousing | "An employee was disassembling crane rigging when their left hand became caught between a pin and block pulley. The employee sustained a partial amputation to their left little finger." | |
| 2025 | GA | Wholesale Trade | "On January 1, 2025, an employee was operating a capstan to move kiln cars along tracks. The rope of the capstan became twisted and the employee went to manually untangle it. As the rope tightened, his left ring finger was caught, resulting in partial amputation of the fingertip." | |
| 2024 | TX | Construction | "An employee was setting up a winch to adjust an internal cable/tendon when it jumped and the metal guide rod struck the employee on the right side of the cheek. The employee sustained a fractured jaw." | |
| 2024 | AR | Construction | "On November 19, 2024, at approximately 1:50 p.m., an employee was watching a line get pulled from concrete when they were struck by a pulley. The employee was hospitalized with fractures to their left hand, left wrist, the left side of their face, and spine, as well as internal bleeding. The employee required surgery." |
Source: OSHA Severe Injury Reports. Narratives are verbatim from filings; identifying details may have been redacted by OSHA.
Frequently asked questions
Amputations are the most frequent injury type reported for this equipment, occurring in 61% of severe cases. The high force and speed of these components often lead to crushing or severing injuries before you can react. An attorney can help you understand how these specific injury patterns relate to your Workers' Compensation claim.
Your employer is required under OSHA standards to provide adequate machine guarding to prevent contact with nip points and moving parts. If a guard was missing, broken, or improperly designed, your employer may be liable for failing to maintain a safe work environment. An attorney can help you investigate whether these safety failures contributed to your injury.
Workers' Compensation is designed to cover medical expenses and lost wages for injuries sustained during the course of your employment, regardless of fault. If you were injured while operating a drum or pulley system, you are likely entitled to benefits for your recovery. An attorney can help you ensure your claim is filed correctly and that you receive the full benefits you are owed.
While Workers' Compensation is generally the exclusive remedy for workplace injuries, there are specific legal exceptions if third-party equipment manufacturers or maintenance contractors were negligent. An attorney can help you evaluate the circumstances of your accident to determine if you have grounds for a personal injury claim beyond standard Workers' Compensation.