Inspection Detail

Note: The following inspection has not been indicated as closed. OSHA citation items will be posted 30 (thirty) days after the employer receives the citation(s), except in cases of significant public interest. Posted citation items reflect any amendments to citations that are the result of a prompt settlement, which OSHA encourages. Employers and employee representatives will continue to receive copies of the citation(s) upon issuance.

Inspection: 1714263.015 - Konz Wood Products, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Appleton Area Office

Investigation Summary

At 3:45 a.m. on December 5, 2023, three employees were operating a resaw stacker. Coworker #1 was operating the infeed side, while Coworker #2 trained Employee #1 on operating the stacker side. The resaw stacker takes pre-cut boards and rips them down to smaller sizes and then restacks them onto pallets. Coworker #1 stated that s/he was stopping the infeed and would just run through the remaining material on the resaw. Coworker #2 communicated with Employee #1 that s/he was going to go outside of the building to get a forklift, so that s/he could remove the palletized material from rollers that extended through an outside door on the backside of the stacker. When Coworker #2 pulled up to the door, s/he heard a crash. Coworker #2 exited the lift and looked through the doorway to see if Employee #1 was alright. Coworker #2 did not see Employee #1 and went back into the building, where s/he found Employee #1 unresponsive on the empty pallet side of the stacker. Employee #1 had attempted to free a jammed board that had been wedged between the stacker frame and the stacker carriage. When the board was freed, the stacker carriage fell and struck Employee #1 in the back of the head, resulting in crushing injuries to the skull and neck. Employee #1 was killed.

Keywords: Board, Crushed, Crushing, Falling Object, Forklift, Head, Jammed, Neck, Pallet, Roller--Mach/Part, Struck By, Unresponsive