Worker injured when 1K-pound load falls from crane

CANTON, Ohio — A crane's safety latch failed and 1,000 pounds of equipment fell on a man below and injured him as he worked on the factory floor of TimkenSteel Corp. For the second time in a year, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration found struck-by, fall and amputation hazards at the company's two Canton plants following inspections.

OSHA issued TimkenSteel's Gambrinus plant one willful, one repeated and two serious safety citations on Oct. 30 as a result of its investigation into the May 4, 2015, injury. The seven-year employee could not work for several months after the incident in which he fractured his left foot and broke several bones.

The injury occurred days after OSHA initiated an inspection at the company's Harrison steel plant under the Primary Metals Emphasis Program. The agency issued eight repeated, eight serious and one other-than serious violation at the site. TimkenSteel faces proposed fines of $393,500 for violations at the facilities and has been placed in the agency's Severe Violator Enforcement Program.

"This worker is lucky to be alive," said Howard Eberts, OSHA's area director in Cleveland. "We also observed conditions where workers could have fallen or lost limbs. It is unacceptable that the company has repeatedly been cited for these same hazards. TimkenSteel's safety and health program has major deficiencies that need to be addressed immediately."

Investigators found workers were exposed to the following:

• Falls due to lack of guardrails, slippery surfaces and protective equipment.
• Live machinery operating parts during service and maintenance because locking devices, guards and other safety procedures were not used.
• Damaged equipment.
• Electrical hazards.

OSHA also found the company did not report injuries and illness, as required.

View citations issued here.

TimkenSteel was spun off from The Timken Company in 2014. Prior to this inspection, the three plants and corporate offices now operated by TimkenSteel had been inspected by OSHA 27 times since 2005, resulting in the issuance of 76 violations. The manufacturer of large steel bars and seamless mechanical tubing was mostly recently cited by OSHA in November 2014. Its Harrison steel plant melts, rolls, produces and finishes steel, and its Gambrinus plant performs cold steel finishing.

The company has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA's area director in Cleveland, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

To ask questions, obtain compliance assistance, file a complaint, or report amputations, eye loss, workplace hospitalizations, fatalities or situations posing imminent danger to workers, the public should call OSHA's toll-free hotline at 800-321-OSHA (6742) or the agency's Cleveland Area Office at 216-447-4194.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to ensure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.