"was entangled and killed by a machine...."

 

The hazard of machinery such as presses, pedestal drills, lathes, etc. is often overlooked in our industry. That is because these machines age overtime and rarely do the safety mechanisms keep up with the latest safety mechanisms. Here is a recent incident emphasizing the hazard of working with such machinery:

Initial analyzes claim that he was entangled and killed by a machine necessary for work in an aluminum company. One morning during the 3^rd week of November 2020 in a town in Italy, around 10, the accident at work cost the life of a worker. The man was originally from a local village and according to what has been learned every day he shuttled between his home and where he worked for a company. The investigations into the accident are conducted by the carabinieri, on the spot the magistrate on duty. The local prosecutor has opened an investigation. The deceased’s body was transferred to the a local hospital where an autopsy will be performed to ascertain what happened. The deceased’s body will not be returned to his family and will return to the city only after.“

We pray for the deceased worker’s family, friends, and coworkers. It is hard to put words to the pain the worker’s family is experiencing. But we know that their pain will never end. Overtime it might lessen, but it will grow with every holiday, wedding, grandchild birth, etc. when the loss is brought back to the surface.

Another news media article stated that “the victim was crushed by a lathe-press , used for aluminum processing.” We hate to make assumptions, but till we read the investigative report that is all we can do. There have been numerous incidents involving lathes. The commonly occur when the operator fails to follow their training, skip steps, and make assumptions. One of the incidents involved a worker wearing the wrong type of gloves (per the equipment manufacturer’s operating manual). The gloves got caught in the spinning parts and ripped the workers hand off. Another incident involved a worker who disengaged the safety mechanism and was crushed by the closing door. Regardless, of the specific causes all machinery should be operated as per the equipment manufacturer’s operating manual.

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