# Skull fracture and intracranial injury at Bluewater Thermal Solutions
> OSHA SIR `2020109618` · 10/9/2020 · ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS
## Severity
- **1 hospitalization**
- **Body part:** Brain
- **Nature of injury:** Skull fracture and intracranial injury
## Cause
- **Event:** Struck by dislodged flying object, particle
- **Source:** Nonmetallic minerals, except fuel, unspecified
- **Secondary source:** Forklift, order picker, platform truck-powered
## Employer
- **Name:** Bluewater Thermal Solutions
- **Location:** 5136 27th Ave, ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS, 61109
- **NAICS:** 332811
- **Jurisdiction:** 1
## Narrative

The injured employee was operating a sit-down forklift (PIT) with an empty pallet on its forks when the PIT got stuck in the grass and mud while ascending a slight incline in a grassy area in back of the building. A second PIT was used to push the stuck PIT out of a rut to no avail. A third PIT was then connected to the other two PITs with a sling tether and a heavy chain. The two PITs attempted to tow the injured employee s PIT out of the rut and the jarring motion caused a small rock or piece of mud to strike the injured employee in the back of the head, causing her head to strike the PIT frame. The employee suffered a loss of consciousness, a skull fracture, a subdural hematoma and a head laceration. The employee was hospitalized.

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*Source: [OSHA Severe Injury Reports](https://www.osha.gov/severe-injury-reports) · AI Analytics · CC0 1.0*