Old Dominion Tree & Lawn Care of Poquoson, VA, has been fined $185,500 in the death of Frank Gornik for 20 serious and willful violations including lack of safety checks of machines and regular performance of maintenance repairs. The company has 15 days to decide whether to contest the fines.

Police say Gornik was shoveling debris into a wood chipper when the shovel got caught in the blades and pulled him into the machine.

Gornik was working with two adult employees, but they were away from the chipper when he was pulled in.

The company is owned by Robert Stickland. He and his wife took Gornik into their home after the death of both his parents.

Virginia child labor laws prohibit anyone under 18 from operating any power woodworking machine, including a wood chipper. Click here to find out what jobs teens under age 18 are prohibited from doing.

The unidentified employee is expected to recover.

The employee of American Wood Source of Lebanon, OH, was transported via medical helicopter to undergo surgery. He appeared to be conscious as emergency personnel loaded him onto the helicopter, according to the Journal-News.

The worker suffered the injury while operating machinery. No other details on the accident are available.

OSHA is investigating.

There’s an important point workers and supervisors should know about impalement injuries: If an object pierces part of an employee’s body, it’s best to leave it alone — don’t try to remove it.

Often, removal will cause the person to bleed to death before help arrives. Letting it in place can seal the wound until it can be removed by doctors.

Proof: In 2007, 17-year-old Matt Robinson of Dexter, MO, accidentally shot a three-and-a-half inch nail through his heart at a construction job and lived to tell about it.

He said he wanted to take the nail out but didn’t because he was scared.

He made the right decision, according to doctors. A surgeon said if Robinson had tried to pull the nail out himself, he would have died.

The nail actually plugged the hole in his heart which kept him from bleeding to death.

Brian Jacobs had been at Summerford Pallet in Ashford, AL, helping his father at work when he fell into the machine.

He underwent surgery at a nearby hospital. Reports are that the boy will be able to keep his legs. He’s in fair condition in an intensive care unit.

OSHA is investigating, according to the Dothan Eagle.

Federal law prohibits 14- and 15-year-olds from working in manufacturing, mining or any hazardous industry.

For more information on prohibited occupations for teenagers, click here.

Police say Cody Rigsby was buried under several feet of grain inside a bin at the Tempel Grain elevator.

On the day of the incident, local emergency officials were notified at 1:30 p.m. that a worker was missing and believed trapped in the bin, according to The Pueblo Chieftain.

Four fire departments and community volunteers worked until 7 p.m. the same day to recover Rigsby’s body. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

It’s not known what safety equipment was being used at the time of the incident.

Workers should be trained to assume that the potential for entrapment in a bin with stored loose materials (grain, sand, gravel, coal) is always present, according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Other safety steps:

• Workers shouldn’t be allowed to enter a storage area from the bottom when material is adhering to the sides or is bridged overhead.
• When workers must enter storage areas, they should stay above the material at all times and never stand or walk on top of it.
• Any time a worker enters a storage area, the supply and discharge of materials must be stopped and locked out.
• Workers entering storage areas should wear safety belts or harnesses with properly fastened life lines.

Miguel Herrera-Soltero was working at Progressive Protein. His stepfather, Richard Leon, was also working at the plant when he heard another worker scream.

After hearing the scream, he saw his stepson on the floor with part of the forklift on his neck. Leon tried to pull the teen from under the machine but couldn’t.

Herrera-Soltero was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.

OSHA standards say a forklift operator must be 18 or older. There is an exception for agriculture. Progressive Protein is a rendering plant for animal fats. Herrera-Soltero had worked at the plant just over a month.

As summer approaches, more teens will be entering the workforce. The U.S. Department of Labor has a web page that you can access here that lists jobs teens can and can’t do.