An employee was tightening bolts on a flange attached to a pipe. The employee was repositioning the pipe by moving the trunnion back and forth to allow access to the bolts on the flange. The trunnion moved towards the employee and he tried to grab the base plate to try and hold it up. The base plate struck the ground and caught the top of his left hand between the plate and the ground causing fingertip amputations to his left middle and ring fingers.