Amputations

An employee was instructing another employee on how to conduct a moisture test by placing baked cookies coming out of the oven (on a conveyor belt) on top of the fan's guard enclosure. A series of three to four fans are attached to the belt to blow down on the cookies (cooling) as they come out of the oven. These fans could be located 6 to 12 inches above the conveyor belt. The oven operators can't see the fans but are able to reach and make physical contact with them. The injured employee took a moisture reading by removing the cookie from the conveyor belt and placing it on top of the fan's guard for cooling. The employee's right-hand middle finger came in contact with rotating fan blades, amputating her fingertip to the knuckle. A spatula that was available for removing cookies from the pan was not used, and the fan guard was broken at the time of the incident.