- Thread starter chuk
- Start date
Makes ya proud of your fellow tradesmen! That film they're putting on is probably mirror safety backing! not even anti-bandit film.
i can imagine that ladder slipping and him eating concrete from the top of the frail! mmmmmm yummy!
i can imagine that ladder slipping and him eating concrete from the top of the frail! mmmmmm yummy!
Horrorking
Welding anything I can!
- Messages
- 41
I was working on a mates lathe many many years ago (Replacing a switch), and when he tested it, he tried skimming a 18inch long piece of 2mm stainless bar (for a model train). The bar broke, and hit me in my arm. I had a piece of metal sticking out about 15mm from my wrist.....
Except, the metal went through the skin, between the 2 lower arm bones and caused a lump about an inch high up near my elbow - about a foot of metal in there! Went to the hospital, they gave me a block injection while they xrayed it about 50 times (well at least 5 lol), and did an ultrasound, and eventually determined that it had missed everything important, so they simply pulled it out - 3 stitches and a dose of antibiotics was all I got thank goodness
Now I stay well away from lathes!
Except, the metal went through the skin, between the 2 lower arm bones and caused a lump about an inch high up near my elbow - about a foot of metal in there! Went to the hospital, they gave me a block injection while they xrayed it about 50 times (well at least 5 lol), and did an ultrasound, and eventually determined that it had missed everything important, so they simply pulled it out - 3 stitches and a dose of antibiotics was all I got thank goodness
Now I stay well away from lathes!
I'll bet you were thinking 'what the hell's happened' until you realised? I've seen tv programs where people have been speared by massive objects and have done absolutely no damage whatsoever apart from the entry wound!Horrorking
Welding anything I can!
- Messages
- 41
Yeah it was odd - no pain, just a hit in the arm. It was probably 20 seconds after, when I tried to twist my arm I realised it simply didnt twist and feld "Odd".
Even when I got to the hospital, in discomfort, but not pain at all, the triage nurse asked what was wrong & I showed her.... She turned white, and almost ran to get the doctor.
They prodded & poked for ages, got me to move fingers, wrist etc, and could not believe I had done no appreciable damage. The only real bleeding was when they pulled it out - the end just nicked the artery in my wrist, spraying a couple of nice jets of the good red stuff until they applied pressure. 5 mins later I was stitched up & out of the operating room. The scar is all of 6mm or so long, and faded so you can barely see it.
I wish all scars faded as easily lol. I broke more than a few bones on jet ski's as a young guy, and they hurt more & more as I get older, especially the shoulder which was dislocated about 4 times, and not to mention the broken wrist (Which I did not realise was broken for 4 weeks - it was just bruised & sore for a while)
Even when I got to the hospital, in discomfort, but not pain at all, the triage nurse asked what was wrong & I showed her.... She turned white, and almost ran to get the doctor.
They prodded & poked for ages, got me to move fingers, wrist etc, and could not believe I had done no appreciable damage. The only real bleeding was when they pulled it out - the end just nicked the artery in my wrist, spraying a couple of nice jets of the good red stuff until they applied pressure. 5 mins later I was stitched up & out of the operating room. The scar is all of 6mm or so long, and faded so you can barely see it.
I wish all scars faded as easily lol. I broke more than a few bones on jet ski's as a young guy, and they hurt more & more as I get older, especially the shoulder which was dislocated about 4 times, and not to mention the broken wrist (Which I did not realise was broken for 4 weeks - it was just bruised & sore for a while)
Horrorking
Welding anything I can!
- Messages
- 41
Others from work:
Contractor was drilling into a live distribution board to add another 240V 16A circuit breaker next to an existing one. He had turned all outgoing supplies off for safety, but there was still 3 phase 415V coming in to the board. To aid the job, he had his left hand holding the board slightly open so he could see, and any rubbish fell on the ground rather than inside the box. Alas by opening the board slightly, when the 8mm drill went through the front panel, it then continued about 50mm further inside, and went straight through 2 32mm cables, Red & Blue phase, causing a massive arc within the tiny board. The resultant arc removed all the flesh from 3 of the 4 fingers holding the board open. All three fingers were removed by doctors soon after
Underneath our high voltage switchboards we used to have a 10mm piece of plywood as a barrier for rodents etc from entering from the cable tunnels, up the cables and into the bottom of the switchboards, where they could get access to live terminals of up to 11kv. Because the company decided to install a fireproof material below the switchboards, they powered down half a switchboard at a time to allow contractors to remove the ply and add a fireproof “cement” around the cables. Some of the work needed access from below the switchboard, and one gentleman was down there watching the work. Because it was noisy, he was wearing earmuffs that contained a metal band that went over the head and held the earmuffs in place. For some reason I don’t know, he placed his head up under the LIVE section of the 11kV switchboard, and came close to the 11kv terminals. The metal earmuff band conducted enough current in the new few hundred milliseconds, that it melted the plastic earmuffs into his skin. Doctors were unable to save his ears, and he was left with scars on his face, ears and neck that still looked horrendous years after. At least he lived, but sunglasses were probably going to be hard to wear for the rest of his life!
We have ventilation fans that remove hot air from inside the building and exhaust it to the roof. A cleaner was using a rag to clean the rubber bellows while the fan was in service, but this time he pressed a little too hard, pushing his fingers through the perished rubber. What nobody realised was that the 3ft diameter fan blades were basically dead level with the top of the bellows, and the fan was running. His fingers were pulled into the blades, causing huge injuries. He had multiple surgeries, but I believe he lost one finger and part of another.
We have had oil filled Current transformers in power station switchyards fail in the past. Apparently there was a known defect with some of them, and they would fail with little warning. Now these CT’s are about 4ft across at the basement, and maybe 5ft high, oil filled, and the outside is porcelain. They don’t actually just let a little bit of smoke out & go “pop”. They send fist-sized chunks of porcelain for about 100 meters from their location, but I don’t believe anyone was ever injured, and we had about 5 or 10 of them fail in such a manner.
We had an “explosion” in an 11kv switchboard at about 2am one night. I went over with a few other people to investigate the cause of the failure. We could see carbon had issued from a join on the back of the board in behind one of the incoming supply cables, and the metal in the area was deformed out. We probably spent 15 minutes walking around, debating what to do next, looking at fault flags etc when I realised that “Bit of metal” we were walking on at the end of the switchboard was in fact the end of the switchboard! The explosion had pressurised the board to such an extent that the end cover, about 5ft high and 3ft wide had torn off the 15 or so bolts and ended up on the floor. 2 minutes later we had managed to find the source of the arcing within the board – about 3/4 of a small field mouse was found just below the busbars. No human injuries, but an innocent mouse was killed in the process.
Oh and one more from home, but not my injury...
My son was about 3 years old and we were visiting my grandmother in an aged care facility. He got bored so started sliding off the plastic chair & I caught him & put him back on the chair. This continued about 10 times, until I told him no more. Now saying no more to a 3 year old means nothing, so he slid forward once again, but this time I did not catch him (I had turned to my grandmother to say something), and he fell forward. In the process he clipped the corner of his eye socket on the hard plastic arm of the chair I was sitting in, and the next day he had the blackest of black eyes. The problem was not the black eye, but more that he went round telling everyone “My daddy did this!” Sigh, it took a LOT of explaining whenever he told someone…
Contractor was drilling into a live distribution board to add another 240V 16A circuit breaker next to an existing one. He had turned all outgoing supplies off for safety, but there was still 3 phase 415V coming in to the board. To aid the job, he had his left hand holding the board slightly open so he could see, and any rubbish fell on the ground rather than inside the box. Alas by opening the board slightly, when the 8mm drill went through the front panel, it then continued about 50mm further inside, and went straight through 2 32mm cables, Red & Blue phase, causing a massive arc within the tiny board. The resultant arc removed all the flesh from 3 of the 4 fingers holding the board open. All three fingers were removed by doctors soon after
Underneath our high voltage switchboards we used to have a 10mm piece of plywood as a barrier for rodents etc from entering from the cable tunnels, up the cables and into the bottom of the switchboards, where they could get access to live terminals of up to 11kv. Because the company decided to install a fireproof material below the switchboards, they powered down half a switchboard at a time to allow contractors to remove the ply and add a fireproof “cement” around the cables. Some of the work needed access from below the switchboard, and one gentleman was down there watching the work. Because it was noisy, he was wearing earmuffs that contained a metal band that went over the head and held the earmuffs in place. For some reason I don’t know, he placed his head up under the LIVE section of the 11kV switchboard, and came close to the 11kv terminals. The metal earmuff band conducted enough current in the new few hundred milliseconds, that it melted the plastic earmuffs into his skin. Doctors were unable to save his ears, and he was left with scars on his face, ears and neck that still looked horrendous years after. At least he lived, but sunglasses were probably going to be hard to wear for the rest of his life!
We have ventilation fans that remove hot air from inside the building and exhaust it to the roof. A cleaner was using a rag to clean the rubber bellows while the fan was in service, but this time he pressed a little too hard, pushing his fingers through the perished rubber. What nobody realised was that the 3ft diameter fan blades were basically dead level with the top of the bellows, and the fan was running. His fingers were pulled into the blades, causing huge injuries. He had multiple surgeries, but I believe he lost one finger and part of another.
We have had oil filled Current transformers in power station switchyards fail in the past. Apparently there was a known defect with some of them, and they would fail with little warning. Now these CT’s are about 4ft across at the basement, and maybe 5ft high, oil filled, and the outside is porcelain. They don’t actually just let a little bit of smoke out & go “pop”. They send fist-sized chunks of porcelain for about 100 meters from their location, but I don’t believe anyone was ever injured, and we had about 5 or 10 of them fail in such a manner.
We had an “explosion” in an 11kv switchboard at about 2am one night. I went over with a few other people to investigate the cause of the failure. We could see carbon had issued from a join on the back of the board in behind one of the incoming supply cables, and the metal in the area was deformed out. We probably spent 15 minutes walking around, debating what to do next, looking at fault flags etc when I realised that “Bit of metal” we were walking on at the end of the switchboard was in fact the end of the switchboard! The explosion had pressurised the board to such an extent that the end cover, about 5ft high and 3ft wide had torn off the 15 or so bolts and ended up on the floor. 2 minutes later we had managed to find the source of the arcing within the board – about 3/4 of a small field mouse was found just below the busbars. No human injuries, but an innocent mouse was killed in the process.
Oh and one more from home, but not my injury...
My son was about 3 years old and we were visiting my grandmother in an aged care facility. He got bored so started sliding off the plastic chair & I caught him & put him back on the chair. This continued about 10 times, until I told him no more. Now saying no more to a 3 year old means nothing, so he slid forward once again, but this time I did not catch him (I had turned to my grandmother to say something), and he fell forward. In the process he clipped the corner of his eye socket on the hard plastic arm of the chair I was sitting in, and the next day he had the blackest of black eyes. The problem was not the black eye, but more that he went round telling everyone “My daddy did this!” Sigh, it took a LOT of explaining whenever he told someone…
Horrorking
Welding anything I can!
- Messages
- 41
Hey, they are only the ones I was at work for... If I included some of the others, you'd faint for a week... too much blood for me to think of 
Ratty
Putting the She in Sheds
- Messages
- 1,775
I've been working like stink the last few weeks (hence my absence from the forum) and taking every sensible precaution in my w/s. Unfortunately my care didn't extend to the kitchen. Tuesday evening, working hard, I forgot to get some paella from the freezer (home made and frozen in a deep bowl) until rather late, we don't have a microwave so I stuck it cold water until I could release it from the bowl then put it in the oven with the fan on. It was taking too long so I thought I'd break it up a bit. Grabbing the nearest knife (a recent bootsale acquisition which I had sharpened to a razor) ...you can see it all now I know ...held lump of paella with one hand and pushed knife hard into it. Knife skidded off. Next thing I am clenching my hand shut and turning the air blue with cursing. Blood everywhere. Mr ratty is out so I belt next door. Refused to open my hand for fear of seeing what I'd done and losing more blood, I just had a feeling it was not good. Neighbour Jane (a veritable expert in all things medical and has cupboards full of useful medicines and serious painkillers) filled me with painkillers and wrapped my hand in clingfilm so I had a nice shiny red fist, straight from a horror movie. I spent over 4 hours in Bury st Eds casualty (where I told two morbidly curious teenage girls that it would have to be amputated) and finally got to see my wound, my best attempt at stigmata, just a bit off centre. Knife went in between my middle and ring finger kind of between the palm pads, then came out the other side between my knuckles. I gave up trying to explain my black fingers (ingrained) when I realised they were as nothing when looking at my filthy sweatshirt, filthy jeans with ripped holes exposing black knees and skanky boots with hair to match. Understandable if it had been a workshop accident but an argument with frozen paella in the kitchen? oh the shame. I was bandaged and sent home with my xrays (they had to check the chunk of steel missing from the knife tip wasn't still inside) and instructions to go to 'plastics' at Addenbrooks the following morning. I spent two days Nil By Mouth before I was finally taken down on Thursday eve, knocked out and repaired. What a stupid waste of time and now I am typing one finger and unable to work and may never get the feeling back in 2 of my fingers. I still feel lucky that I missed all the tendons but SOOOO ****** off with myself. As for the offending knife, I have decided to frame it - blood and all - and hang it on the kitchen wall as a salutary reminder. Never did find the missing piece of metal! Here's the knife to make you all squirm...
...held lump of paella with one hand and pushed knife hard into it. Knife skidded off. Next thing I am clenching my hand shut and turning the air blue with cursing. Blood everywhere. Mr ratty is out so I belt next door. Refused to open my hand for fear of seeing what I'd done and losing more blood, I just had a feeling it was not good. Neighbour Jane (a veritable expert in all things medical and has cupboards full of useful medicines and serious painkillers) filled me with painkillers and wrapped my hand in clingfilm so I had a nice shiny red fist, straight from a horror movie. I spent over 4 hours in Bury st Eds casualty (where I told two morbidly curious teenage girls that it would have to be amputated) and finally got to see my wound, my best attempt at stigmata, just a bit off centre. Knife went in between my middle and ring finger kind of between the palm pads, then came out the other side between my knuckles. I gave up trying to explain my black fingers (ingrained) when I realised they were as nothing when looking at my filthy sweatshirt, filthy jeans with ripped holes exposing black knees and skanky boots with hair to match. Understandable if it had been a workshop accident but an argument with frozen paella in the kitchen? oh the shame. I was bandaged and sent home with my xrays (they had to check the chunk of steel missing from the knife tip wasn't still inside) and instructions to go to 'plastics' at Addenbrooks the following morning. I spent two days Nil By Mouth before I was finally taken down on Thursday eve, knocked out and repaired. What a stupid waste of time and now I am typing one finger and unable to work and may never get the feeling back in 2 of my fingers. I still feel lucky that I missed all the tendons but SOOOO ****** off with myself. As for the offending knife, I have decided to frame it - blood and all - and hang it on the kitchen wall as a salutary reminder. Never did find the missing piece of metal! Here's the knife to make you all squirm...
- Messages
- 14,783
- Location
- UK
Bloody hell Ratty, wondered where you had got to. Not your welding hand i hope! Hope it's better soon.
Horrorking
Welding anything I can!
- Messages
- 41
Outch! Good luck healing,m and I hope you get the feeling back soon!
- Messages
- 14,783
- Location
- UK
Ratty
Putting the She in Sheds
- Messages
- 1,775
Phwoooaarrrr - my sort of girl.
....and thanks for the good wishes...fortunately I am right handed. As I am out of action in the w/s I shall get some other pics posted in showusyergarage and a little project wot I did with HTS 2000. Mostly what I've been doing otherwise is sculpture but without welding.
- Messages
- 17,593
Hmmm, me running a 1mm cutting disc across my thumb knuckle the other day pales into insignificance compared to your injury. The best thing about grinder discs it they cauterise as they cut 
. Hope you get better soon. The best physio is lots of
. Hope you get better soon. The best physio is lots of 
Drains
Yeah, nah.
- Messages
- 7,721
- Location
- Sefton, South Island, NZ
Didn't lose your sense of humour though!
Ratty
Putting the She in Sheds
- Messages
- 1,775
Absolutely not! Laughter is the best cure-all and the best pain-killer. Made Jane and Mr Ratty tell me jokes while they poked my wound, inserted a cannular and jabbed me full of local anaesthetic. Nurse prob thought I was balmy.
Drains
Yeah, nah.
- Messages
- 7,721
- Location
- Sefton, South Island, NZ
Ratty
Putting the She in Sheds
- Messages
- 1,775
What, like the South of France?
I think you're a little barmy, myself
