Incident with Press Brake Results in Amputations and $35,000 Fine

A worker positioned a piece of aluminum on a press brake and lost his balance, causing his right foot to activate the foot pedal of the press and start the bend cycle. As the press was set in motion, the index and middle fingers of his left hand and the index, middle and ring fingers of his right hand got caught between the punch and the aluminum sheet metal being formed. The worker suffered crushing and amputation injuries to both hands. His employer pleaded guilty to failing to implement proper safety measures to control the hazards associated with the work performed on an Amada press brake and was fined $35,000 [Hi-Tec Industries Inc., Govt. News Release, Oct. 15, 2015].