How often these injuries happen
OSHA recorded 502 severe cases involving ropes, ties, and chains over the last decade. These incidents most frequently result in amputations, which account for 47% of all reported injuries in this category.
The severity of these accidents is driven by the high tension involved in securing heavy loads. Injuries most often impact your fingers, which account for 53% of all cases, often leading to permanent loss of function or complex reconstructive needs.
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Check My BenefitsHow these injuries happen
Injuries involving ropes and chains typically occur when tension is released unexpectedly. You are most often struck by propelled objects, which accounts for 26% of incidents, or become entangled in equipment that is not properly secured. These accidents frequently happen during the loading or unloading of heavy materials when a strap snaps back or a cable breaks under load.
| Cause | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Struck by propelled object or substance | 126 |
| 2 | Entangled in non-running object | 104 |
| 3 | Compressed between running equipment and other object(s) | 100 |
| 4 | Struck by propelled, falling, or suspended object— unspecified | 33 |
| 5 | Struck by falling object | 25 |
| 6 | Struck by suspended or swinging object | 23 |
| 7 | Struck by running powered equipment— unspecified | 12 |
| 8 | Injured by object handled by person | 10 |
Where injuries happen most
Manufacturing leads with 28% of all reported incidents, followed by construction at 26%. In these environments, the constant use of rigging for heavy machinery and material transport creates a high-risk setting where a single failure in a cable or tie-down can result in immediate, life-altering trauma.
Real cases like yours
Common patterns in these reports involve rigging equipment failing under pressure or recoiling with enough force to cause fractures and amputations. Many incidents occur during routine tasks like strapping down metal or releasing tension on scrap containers. If any of these scenarios sound like what happened to you, an attorney can help you evaluate your legal options.
| Year | State | Industry | Incident summary | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | SD | Manufacturing | "An employee was working from a man basket attached to a powered industrial truck. He had been loading manufactured tanks onto tractor trailer flatbeds. While removing the rigging equipment, a rigging strap caught his left ankle against the toe kick of the man basket. The employee sustained a fractured left ankle/tibia/foot." | |
| 2025 | AL | Manufacturing | "An employee was dumping aluminum scrap from an engineered scrap can into a larger scrap container when the release cable caught the employee's gloved thumb between the lever cable and the handle of the scrap can. The employee sustained an amputation to the thumb tip." | |
| 2025 | TX | Wholesale Trade | "A driver was strapping down metal to put on the truck. The metal strapping snapped back and hit his left eye. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery for a ruptured globe." | |
| 2025 | LA | Wholesale Trade | "An employee was unloading a roll-off box from an 18-wheeler truck. The cable securing the box broke loose and struck the employee, and he was hospitalized with a torn ligament in his arm." | |
| 2025 | LA | Manufacturing | "An employee was repairing a wire rope that had become caught and had begun to unravel. He was disconnecting the rope when it snapped and recoiled, jolting him upward and causing him to strike a nearby metal bar. He suffered two fractures to his right femur, as well as a puncture wound, and was hospitalized." | |
| 2025 | OH | Construction | "At about 2:30 p.m. on June 16, 2025, an aerial lineman was stringing aerial strand (wire braided rope) from span to span along power poles. A D-ring flipped on a bucket arm, causing the strand to push against the employee's right ring finger and trap it against the bucket gate. The fingertip was amputated at the first knuckle." | |
| 2025 | FL | Construction | "Three employees were pulling tension cable (similar to rebar) through the walls of a condo using a motor system. Two employees were needed to hold the cable while the third employee drilled the mounting locations. When the third employee activated the drill, the cables twisted. They caught the right index finger of one of the other two employees, amputating his fingertip." | |
| 2025 | AL | Manufacturing | "The injured employee was helping a co-worker secure finishing material to a pallet using steel strapping (5/8" wide, 0.20" thick). The co-worker went to hand the strapping to the injured employee when they bent down and their right eye contacted the steel strapping, resulting in a laceration to the cornea and injury to the retina." | |
| 2025 | LA | Administrative Services | "A temporary employee was hooking a strap to the bucket on a skid steer when their middle finger got caught between the strap and the bucket. The employee's fingertip was amputated." | |
| 2025 | GA | Construction | "An employee was winching a shipping container onto his rollback truck using a remote and standing at the rear. The hook on the chain broke and the chain struck his right leg. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured tibia and a laceration." |
Source: OSHA Severe Injury Reports. Narratives are verbatim from filings; identifying details may have been redacted by OSHA.