How often these injuries happen
OSHA recorded 204 severe cases involving heavy rail vehicles over the past decade. These incidents frequently result in fractures, which represent 44% of all reported injuries, often requiring extensive medical treatment and long-term recovery.
The severity of these injuries is compounded by the massive scale of the equipment involved. You may suffer traumatic amputations when caught between or struck by these heavy machines.
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Check My BenefitsHow these injuries happen
Injuries involving heavy rail vehicles most often occur when you fall from the equipment, accounting for 45% of all reported incidents. Other common scenarios include being struck by moving rail vehicles or becoming compressed between railcars and other objects during switching or loading operations.
| Cause | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Other fall to lower level | 89 |
| 2 | Struck by rolling powered vehicle or machinery | 27 |
| 3 | Non-passenger struck by rail vehicle | 22 |
| 4 | Compressed between running equipment and other object(s) | 15 |
| 5 | Other rail vehicle incident— n.e.c. | 9 |
| 6 | Rail vehicle collisions | 5 |
| 7 | Struck by rolling, sliding, or shifting objects—non-running | 5 |
| 8 | Incidents onboard rail vehicle in normal operation | 4 |
Where injuries happen most
Transportation and warehousing operations account for 35% of all reported rail vehicle injuries. This high frequency stems from the constant movement of heavy cargo and the inherent risks associated with loading, switching, and securing railcars in fast-paced logistics environments.
Real cases like yours
Common patterns in these reports include falling from railcars while securing loads, being crushed between railcar knuckles during switching, or being struck by containers moved by cranes. 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 safety failures contributed to your injury.
| Year | State | Industry | Incident summary | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | TX | Transportation & Warehousing | "The injured employee loaded a container onto a railcar and then mounted the railcar to put in the locking mechanism for the container. The employee was struck by another container that a crane was loading onto the railcar and fell approximately four feet from the railcar to the concrete ground. The employee sustained fractures to their pelvis, shoulder, and two ribs." | |
| 2025 | MT | Wholesale Trade | "Employees were loading a set of grain hoppers. A lid blew shut on the next car to be loaded. While flipping the hopper lid back open, an employee fell from the top of the rail car to the ground 14 feet below. He suffered two compound fractures to one leg and a fracture to the other leg/ankle. " | |
| 2025 | ND | Wholesale Trade | "An employee on top of a moving railcar when their self-retracting lifeline (SRL) became caught on a load-out spout. The employee was dragged along the railcar, then rolled off the railcar and fell to ground. The employee was hospitalized with fractures to their wrist, right side ribs, and femur." | |
| 2025 | FL | Transportation & Warehousing | "An employee was descending from a railcar to a platform when he lost his footing and landed on the pavement below. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured right foot and required surgery." | |
| 2025 | IL | Manufacturing | "On April 27, 2025, employees were performing a railcar switch. When the train began to shift back, the injured employee's right arm got crushed between the knuckles of two railcars. The employee was hospitalized with fractures to their forearm." | |
| 2025 | CO | Wholesale Trade | "The injured employee was on top of a rail car after completing a chemical transfer. After removing the stinger (25' measuring pole), he stepped onto the barrel of the rail car, and went to hand the stinger to a co-worker who was on a rail car on a separate track. The injured employee lost his balance and fell forward through the cage on top of the rail car. He struck the side of the adjacent rail car and landing on the ground. The fall distance was approximately 15 feet. The employee sustained a compression fracture in his spine and fractures to both heels." | |
| 2025 | IL | Manufacturing | "An employee was uncoupling railcars while the cars were in motion and a car ran over her left lower leg, resulting in crush injuries and amputation below the knee. The employee was hospitalized." | |
| 2025 | ND | Wholesale Trade | "An employee stepped onto a railcar during a loading operation. The railcar was moving and the employee was pulled backward off his feet by his self-retracting lifeline when it reached the end of its 30-foot cable. The cable caught on something and then snapped, causing the employee to fall to the ground. He suffered an injury to the L1, L2, and L3 vertebrae that required surgery and a shoulder dislocation." | |
| 2024 | MS | Manufacturing | "An employee was descending a railcar when their hand became caught on part of the car/ladder. The employee sustained a partial amputation to their ring finger." | |
| 2024 | IL | Transportation & Warehousing | "An employee was climbing the rear ladder on the side of the railcar to enter the B-Deck to unload. They fell approximately 11 feet from the ladder to the ground and sustained multiple fractures to their clavicle, ribs, and skull, as well as a collapsed lung." |
Source: OSHA Severe Injury Reports. Narratives are verbatim from filings; identifying details may have been redacted by OSHA.