How often these injuries happen
OSHA recorded 35 severe incidents involving glues and adhesives over the last decade. Thermal burns are the most frequent injury type, often resulting from contact with high-temperature application equipment or ignition of volatile vapors.
Because these accidents often involve chemical exposure or fire, you may face long-term respiratory damage or severe skin trauma requiring extensive medical intervention.
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Check My BenefitsHow these injuries happen
Injuries involving adhesives typically stem from contact with hot substances or flash fires during application. You are often harmed when vapors travel to unexpected areas, causing respiratory distress, or when high-temperature glue tanks malfunction during refilling. In many cases, these incidents occur because of inadequate ventilation or a lack of proper personal protective equipment during the bonding process.
| Cause | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Contact with hot objects or substances | 11 |
| 2 | Flash fire | 8 |
| 3 | Inhalation of harmful substance | 7 |
| 4 | Exposure to harmful substance through exposed tissue | 3 |
| 5 | Exposure to harmful substances— unspecified | 3 |
| 6 | Fire— unspecified | 1 |
| 7 | Ingestion of harmful substance | 1 |
| 8 | Fire— small-scale, limited | 1 |
Where injuries happen most
Manufacturing accounts for 60% of all severe adhesive-related injuries. This high concentration is driven by the constant use of industrial-grade bonding agents on assembly lines, where high-speed application and large-volume heating tanks create persistent risks for thermal burns and chemical exposure.
Real cases like yours
Common patterns in these reports include you suffering respiratory distress from drifting vapors, sustaining severe burns while refilling hot glue tanks, or experiencing flash fires during insulation installation. 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 | CT | Transportation & Warehousing | "An employee was sorting packages. A spray adhesive was used to repair a belt 8-10 feet away; the vapors traveled to the employee, who suffered a chemical-induced asthma attack with dizziness, difficulty breathing, and brief loss of consciousness. The employee was hospitalized." | |
| 2024 | OH | Manufacturing | "On September 23, 2024, an employee was filling a hot glue tank with glue pellets when he sustained second- and third-degree burns to four fingers on his right hand. The employee was not wearing personal protective equipment at the time." | |
| 2024 | AL | Manufacturing | "An employee was laying insulation using spray glue when it caught fire and the employee was burned." | |
| 2024 | CT | Retail Trade | "On April 11, 2024, new carpeting was being installed in the store, and fumes from the glue caused an employee to be hospitalized with respiratory issues." | |
| 2024 | AL | Manufacturing | "An employee was working with glue on a line when they began to experience an allergic reaction, resulting in hospitalization due to swelling in the face." | |
| 2023 | GA | Manufacturing | "An employee was spraying glue to the floor of an enclosed cargo trailer. The fumes made contact with the heater causing a flash fire. The employee suffered burns to their face and right hand." | |
| 2023 | IL | Manufacturing | "An employee was loading a mix tank with cyanoacrylate. The drum was elevated on a drum tipper with a plastic spout attached. The employee went to open the spout but the entire spout came out of the drum. The cyanoacrylate splashed onto the employee saturating the left sleeve of their shirt. The employee removed the saturated garment but had already sustained burns from the shirt adhering to their arm. The employee was hospitalized with second- and third-degree burns." | |
| 2023 | PA | Manufacturing | "An employee was carrying a bottle of door seal solution containing sodium silicate. The employee bumped their arm, causing them to ingest the solution. The employee suffered from wheezing, nausea, and breathing difficulties." | |
| 2022 | PA | Manufacturing | "An employee was replacing a temperature gauge on a discharge header from a tank in a hot melt manufacturing building. As he was removing the gauge, hot adhesive discharged from the threaded port piping and caused second- and third-degree burns on the top side of his right arm from the elbow to the wrist." | |
| 2021 | AL | Manufacturing | "An employee was exposed to glue containing isocyanate while doing maintenance work on a glue machine. The employee developed respiratory problems and was hospitalized." |
Source: OSHA Severe Injury Reports. Narratives are verbatim from filings; identifying details may have been redacted by OSHA.