104,543Records 70,659Employers 84,666Hospitalizations 27,563Amputations 2015-01-01 2025-09-30
Safety Incidents OSHA Severe Injury Reports · 2015–2025

OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #14539241

KICK BACK,LOSS OF BLOOD,CHAIN SAW,LACERATION,NECK,ARTERY,INATTENTION

Event
KICK BACK,LOSS OF BLOOD,CHAIN SAW,LACERATION,NECK,ARTERY,INATTENTION
Linked inspection
No inspection record linked to this accident's victims.
Summary number
14539241
Report ID
452110

Event description

CHAIN SAW KICKED BACK; STRUCK EMPLOYEE IN NECK

Investigation abstract

EMPLOYEE #1 WAS CUTTING BRUSH AND SMALL TREES AROUND A FENCE ROW, NEAR A POWER L N THE NECK, AND ASSOCIATED HEMORRHAGING. INE RIGHT OF WAY. (THE POWERLINE WAS ABOVE A FARM FENCE). THE FENCE WAS WOVEN WI RE WITH WOOD POSTS. THE EMPLOYEE WAS USING A GASOLINE-POWERED CHAIN SAW WITH A S EVENTEEN INCH CUTTER BAR. THE EMPLOYEE ACCIDENTALLY MADE CONTACT WITH THE FENCE POST APPROXIMATELY FIVE FEET, FOUR INCHES ABOVE THE GROUND. THE SAW KICKED BACK, STRIKING EMPLOYEE #1 IN THE NECK. HE LOST CONTROL OF THE SAW, WHICH AGAIN STRUC K THE FENCE POST. THE SAW KICKED BACK A SECOND TIME, CUTTING THE EMPLOYEE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF HIS NECK. THE ACCIDENT OCCURRED AT APPROXIMATELY 3:30 PM, AUGUST 9, 1984. DEATH WAS DUE TO LACERATIONS OF THE CAROTID ARTERY AND OTHER ARTERIES I

Victim

  1. #1 Fatality Age 18 M

    Nature of injury
    7
    Part of body
    20
    Event type
    1
    Source
    21
    Occupation code
    999
    Human factor
    8
    Environmental factor
    18
    Task assigned
    1

Codes shown verbatim from OSHA's accident-investigation database. A human-readable decoder is coming in a future release once the accident_lookup2 dictionary is loaded.