How often these injuries happen
OSHA recorded 28 severe cases involving plumbing fixtures over the past decade. The most frequent injury type is cuts, lacerations, and punctures, which account for 50 percent of all reported incidents.
These injuries are often severe because they frequently involve shattered ceramic or heavy metal components. You are most likely to suffer damage to your fingers, which accounts for 27 percent of all reported body part injuries.
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Check My BenefitsHow these injuries happen
Injuries involving plumbing fixtures typically occur during the handling, installation, or disposal of heavy units. The most common cause is being injured by an object handled by a person, which accounts for 29 percent of cases. You are frequently struck by falling fixtures or suffer crushing injuries when a heavy sink or toilet slips during placement, often leading to severe lacerations or amputations.
| Cause | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Injured by object handled by person | 8 |
| 2 | Struck by falling object | 7 |
| 3 | Compressed between running equipment and other object(s) | 4 |
| 4 | Struck against stationary object | 2 |
| 5 | Overexertion while materials moving by hand | 2 |
| 6 | Struck by propelled object or substance | 2 |
| 7 | Other contact with non-running objects or equipment— n.e.c. | 1 |
| 8 | Fall on same level | 1 |
Where injuries happen most
Construction leads all sectors with 29 percent of reported incidents, as you face constant exposure to heavy lifting and manual installation tasks. Manufacturing and health care facilities also see significant injury rates, often due to the physical demands of moving large fixtures or the hazards involved in disposing of broken or discarded units in cramped spaces.
Real cases like yours
Common patterns in these incidents include fixtures slipping during installation, toilets shattering upon impact, and hands becoming pinched between heavy units and countertops. These reports demonstrate that even routine plumbing tasks carry significant risks of permanent injury. 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 | OH | Transportation & Warehousing | "An employee was lifting a toilet from a pallet and suffered a lower back injury. The employee was hospitalized. " | |
| 2024 | TX | Construction | "Employees were installing a urinal. The injured employee was screwing a bolt onto the urinal while the other employee held the urinal. The urinal slipped and crushed the injured employee's left middle finger, resulting in a fingertip amputation." | |
| 2024 | FL | Construction | "An employee was assisting others in moving a large stainless steel sink when his right hand became pinched between the sink and the countertop. He sustained a partial amputation to a finger." | |
| 2024 | PA | Health Care | "An employee was disposing of a toilet into the dumpster. The toilet caught on the dumpster, fell back, and shattered on the employee, resulting in a laceration to their left wrist that required surgery." | |
| 2024 | FL | Construction | "An employee was installing a toilet. While seating the complete toilet, the tank broke and lacerated the employee's wrist." | |
| 2023 | WV | Retail Trade | "An employee was tossing a damaged toilet into a compactor. The toilet bounced off the compactor and lacerated the employee's right wrist, cutting an artery and tendon." | |
| 2023 | TX | Manufacturing | "An employee was standing on top of a sink basin feeding tubing through the ceiling to the front of the store to where the soda fountain was located. He fell three feet off the sink basin to the ground below, resulting in a fractured right leg." | |
| 2023 | WV | Education | "An employee was cleaning a bathroom. As the employee bent over, the corner of a sink hit the employee's right eyeball, causing an injury that required hospitalization and surgery." | |
| 2023 | IL | Manufacturing | "An employee was taking a molding frame from a shower base in preparation to be trimmed on the band saw. Another 42-pound shower/tub leaning on a rack to the right of him fell on his head, rendering the employee unconscious." | |
| 2022 | TX | Construction | "An employee was trying to throw a toilet into a dumpster. The toilet fell back and lacerated the employee's arm. He was hospitalized." |
Source: OSHA Severe Injury Reports. Narratives are verbatim from filings; identifying details may have been redacted by OSHA.