Metal Shavings From Lathe Make A Deadly Noose

A machinist was finishing a piece of stainless steel on a lathe. The metal shavings peeled off the rotating lathe in one large wire strand and wrapped around his neck, causing partial decapitation.

Investigation of the incident indicated that the machinist claimed that he had 20 years of machine shop work experience in another country. He worked in this machine shop for a couple of months until an automobile accident forced him to stay off work for nearly a year. He was killed on his first day back at work.

An expert witness testifying at the coroner’s inquest said he believed that the victim had been extremely careless in his operation of the lathe and that he had seen other machines being operated in this careless manner by persons with extensive experience. This kind of fatality happens when an experienced worker becomes complacent or takes a job too lightly. Job hazards are just as deadly for the experienced as they are for the new people on the job.