Grain company cited in leg amputation
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The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration said Tuesday that it cited an Illinois grain company after a worker suffered a partial leg amputation this summer.
OSHA cited Westfield-based Littlejohn Grain Inc. for two willful violations and one serious violation, and proposed $115,855 in penalties, following the July incident, in which the employee was seriously injured inside a grain bin.
Investigators determined that the company failed to de-energize and lock out an auger before allowing the worker to enter the grain bin. The company also failed to test the bin for oxygen content and exposed the worker to a fall hazard above dangerous equipment, OSHA said.
The company was previously issued a similar citation following an incident in which a worker was entrapped in a grain bin for five hours. That citation, which consists of 21 total violations, has since been contested.
Littlejohn has 15 business days to contest the latest citation and proposed penalties.
