PORTSMOUTH, Ohio — Appalachian Wood Floors, operating as Graf Custom Hardwood, faces more than $255,000 in fines after a worker suffered a partial arm amputation while troubleshooting a rip saw.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration said it determined the saw’s safety devise was bypassed. This failure allowed the 23-year-old worker to become entangled in the machine’s rotating blades.

After investigating the incident, OSHA opened a concurrent inspection at the company's nearby Campbell Avenue facility. Since 2022, OSHA said five inspections at this location have identified recurring safety violations, leading to Appalachian Wood Floors' inclusion in OSHA's Severe Violator Enforcement Program. Additionally, the company's Charles Street facility was cited for machine safety violations in 2022.

OSHA said its inspectors found the company failed to adequately train employees at both locations in lockout/tagout procedures and did not mandate the use of lockout/tagout when troubleshooting machines, changing blades, cleaning rollers and changing colors. Inspectors also noted unguarded in-going nip points of chains and sprockets on a tilt hoist and chop saw and found multiple electrical safety violations as well as a lack of forklift training.

"A preventable tragedy has left a young man with a permanent, life-altering injury," said OSHA Area Director Ken Montogomery. "Bypassing machine safety procedures puts workers at extreme risk. Appalachian Wood Floors must make worker safety a priority by ensuring proper training, enforcing safety standards, and maintaining machine safety guards to prevent future incidents."

Appalachian Wood Floors has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA's area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.