How often these injuries happen
OSHA recorded 66 severe cases involving high-pressure water equipment over the last decade. Cuts, lacerations, and punctures account for 50 percent of these incidents, often requiring immediate surgical intervention to address damage to your tissue.
These injuries are severe because high-pressure streams can penetrate your skin and clothing instantly. Your hands and fingers are the most frequently affected body parts, often leading to complex recovery processes.
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Check My BenefitsHow these injuries happen
Most injuries occur when you are struck by a propelled object or substance, accounting for 92 percent of reported cases. This happens when a high-pressure wand kicks back, a hose bursts, or you are caught in the direct line of a pressurized stream during cleaning or tunneling operations.
| Cause | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Struck by propelled object or substance | 61 |
| 2 | Exposure to change in air pressure | 2 |
| 3 | Rubbed or abraded by non-running object | 1 |
| 4 | Contact with hot objects or substances | 1 |
| 5 | Oxygen displacement | 1 |
Where injuries happen most
Manufacturing accounts for 24 percent of these severe injuries, followed by mining at 21 percent and construction at 14 percent. These industries rely on heavy-duty water blasting for routine maintenance, where the combination of high-psi equipment and fast-paced work often leads to lapses in safety.
Real cases like yours
Common patterns include you losing control of high-pressure lances, equipment malfunctioning during operation, or accidental exposure when valves are opened unexpectedly. If these scenarios sound like what happened to you, an attorney can help you determine if employer negligence played a role.
| Year | State | Industry | Incident summary | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | CO | Administrative Services | "An employee was pressure washing a bulldozer to clean off trash and dirt when his hand was lacerated by the high-pressure stream of water. The employee required surgery." | |
| 2025 | LA | Construction | "During a hydro-tunneling operation, the pressurized water spray lacerated an employee's left foot." | |
| 2025 | OH | Manufacturing | "An employee was running a high-pressure water cabinet waterblast unit. When the employee released the wand, it propelled itself out of the blast cabinet. The wand whipped around and the high-pressure water stream lacerated the employee's upper right arm." | |
| 2025 | IL | Construction | "On June 26, 2025, a pipe testing specialist was preparing to service a sewer cleanout. They opened a valve and were struck in the face by pressurized water. The employee was hospitalized with injuries to their left eye socket and eyebrow." | |
| 2025 | NE | Administrative Services | "An employee was cleaning in a confined space using the lance (hose) of a 20,000-psi water blasting pump when they lost control of the water lance. The employee went to shut off the unit by raising their foot off of the control pedal but the stream of pressurized water cut through their personal protective equipment (PPE), resulting in a laceration near their ribs on the left side of their torso. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery." | |
| 2025 | TX | Construction | "An employee was water jetting a tube bundle when the water stream contacted his right leg, lacerating it above the knee. The employee was hospitalized and the laceration required surgery." | |
| 2025 | WI | Construction | "An employee was unclogging a pressure washer when their left hand was struck by the high-pressure water. The employee sustained lacerations and required surgery." | |
| 2025 | GA | Manufacturing | "An employee was pressure washing a suspended part when the part started spinning. The employee manually stopped the part from spinning when his hand was caught in the pressurized water blast. The employee was hospitalized with a laceration." | |
| 2024 | IL | Real Estate | "Two employees responded to an emergency call. They discovered a hot water heater leaking in the unit downstairs. The injured employee was going to change a valve. While removing a pipe that was tied to the drain, hot water shot out of the pressure-release valve. The injured employee sustained burns to his right arm and hand, left-side ribs, and torso." | |
| 2024 | AL | Administrative Services | "An employee was operating a high-pressure (2500 psi) water jet machine and sustained a laceration to his abdomen." |
Source: OSHA Severe Injury Reports. Narratives are verbatim from filings; identifying details may have been redacted by OSHA.