Be Safe Out There

[AHill]

Last week, an employee where I work severed the tips of three fingers - in a belt sander.  As I understand it, he was gripping the leading edge and lost control.  His fingers got wedged between the frame and the belt.  Not pretty.  Our Safety folks have suspended use of the machine until a proper guard can be installed.  If it has power and rotates, it can harm you if you're not paying attention!

[Herb G]

I don't care how many guards, cages, etc. are installed, it's still up to the operator to be safe.
My first rule of tool use is never use it if your head is not in the game.

All it takes is a split second & it's game over.
I'm glad the person will recover. (I take it they will.)

[AHill]

The operator had to have three fingers amputated to the first knuckle.  He'll survive.  But here's the bad part.  Given the company decided it's not inherently safe to operate without a safety guard, they now leave themselves open to a lawsuit because the victim could claim he was allowed to operate an inherently unsafe machine - even if he did something unsafe.  There are a boatload of personal injury lawyers in California that will fall all over themselves to take that case.  I don't know that there's any rotating machinery out there that couldn't cause an injury if used improperly.

[Admiral]

But here's the bad part.  Given the company decided it's not inherently safe to operate without a safety guard, they now leave themselves open to a lawsuit because the victim could claim he was allowed to operate an inherently unsafe machine - even if he did something unsafe.  There are a boatload of personal injury lawyers in California that will fall all over themselves to take that case.  

Not really, its black letter law that taking subsequent remedial action to prevent additional injuries is inadmissible to prove the facts of the matter that relate to the injury.  In other words, the action of the employer in shutting down the machine has no affect upon any potential lawsuit.  There is a reason for this, think broken sidewalk, if someone falls down and there is an disincentive to fix the problem, i.e., lawsuit exposure, nothing would be done to fix the sidewalk and more people would fall down.  This was recognized very early on in the common law and so for public policy reasons this rule was established in negligence, or "tort" law.  Its generally a rule of evidence, it exists in the Federal rules, and virtually every state (except perhaps Louisiana, which has a civil law, as opposed to common law, foundation).

Specifically, California Evidence Code Section 1551 says:

 1151. When, after the occurrence of an event, remedial or precautionary measures are taken, which, if taken previously, would have tended to make the event less likely to occur, evidence of such subsequent measures is inadmissible to prove negligence or culpable conduct in connection with the event.

Plus absent extraordinary circumstances, the employer is really only exposed to a worker's compensation claim which the employee would have anyway; so they really did do the right thing, both in the legal sense and to protect their employees.  

The only other lawsuit is against the machine manufacturer, if he can prove dangerous design, etc., a products liability claim. That might be hard to do with a belt sander, but I agree that there would be some PI lawyers who would take that case - the real good ones likely won't.

[hairy]

  I don't know that there's any rotating machinery out there that couldn't cause an injury if used improperly.

I was a mechanic 39 years. I knew more people that lost fingers on a bench grinder  than any other machine.

[Cecil]

Last week, an employee where I work severed the tips of three fingers - in a belt sander.  As I understand it, he was gripping the leading edge and lost control.  His fingers got wedged between the frame and the belt.  Not pretty.  Our Safety folks have suspended use of the machine until a proper guard can be installed.  If it has power and rotates, it can harm you if you're not paying attention!

I would like to thank a gentleman I went to school with for teaching me not to do that very thing.  After he taught us the lesson, they would not let us on that end of the shop until they cleaned up the blood!  A very graphic lesson indeed.  Thanks for the reminder.

[Steve N]

Do not make digital contact with rapidly moving power equipment, it almost always ends poorly.

[EricU]

sandpaper can be really dangerous.  I was polishing something in my lathe with a strap of sandpaper, and it wrapped around and pulled my fingers in.  Let's just say I changed my technique after that.

[WoodCzech]

I was a mechanic 39 years. I knew more people that lost fingers on a bench grinder  than any other machine.

Curious how that happens.  Did the fingers get caught somehow and ground off or did the part being worked get thrown and injured the fingers.  Just want to know what to watch out for.

[hairy]

Usually careless, in a hurry, not adjusting the rest. I always held what I'm grinding in vise grips when possible.