nasty acidents!!

[Wedg1e]

i started helping people over the other side of a 12 foot wall until someone slipped off and i grabbed them with both arms and my arm went CRUNCH !

One of our ex-techies, a certain Tony Williams from Coventry, was doing a guvvy job in a barber's shop one weekend, alone, putting in new lights from a stepladder.
He fell off. Instinctively he put both hands in front of him and broke both wrists on impact, followed closely by a broken nose as his arms folded up under him.
He got to the shop door and found he couldn't release the Yale latch with his wonky hands so he tried with his teeth, twisting his mushy nose in the process.
Once outside he collapsed. When he woke up there was a kindly old gentlemen who said "Are, you alright son? Here, let me help you up" - and proceeded to grab Tony's wrist and pull...

My g/f worked for 25 years in A&E down in Reading; she says that most people who fall off ladders, rooves etc. tended to come in with broken wrists, elbows, noses, shoulders... apart from one chap who'd gone from house roof to floor without putting his arms out (no, it wasn't Rod Hull). From the eyebrows down there wasn't a mark on him. From eyebrows up he looked like Humpty Dumpty... and his brains were coming out of his ears.
He was unconscious but otherwise apparently functioning perfectly, but the brain specialists took one look and said 'no chance'.
However they couldn't be certain that he wasn't in pain, so they gave him some painkillers. Then some more, and some more, and... oh look, he's dead.
Officially we don't have euthanasia in this country, but unofficially it's a different matter (and quite right too in such circumstances).
Those of you around Reading/Slough may recall the Asian woman who had petrol poured over her and a match applied (by the mother-in-law; apparently divorce within that particular religion is not possible but the bride may be legitimately bumped-off by the MIL) - same thing; although she was conscious in A&E her injuries were not compatible with life, as they say, so the medics slipped her a Mickey Finn until it was game over, so the murdering scum husband got the desired effect... and, as I recall, no charges were brought...

 

[metalspanner]

A mate of mine called Paul Whitley, who I believe now runs an on-course bookies somewhere down south, once pumped some part of an old wagon full of grease, then went to wipe off an oozing trickle of grease with his thumb.
Just as the seal popped. High-pressure grease was injected into the end of his thumb, blowing it up like a balloon.
Off to hospital where they effectively handled it like a tube of toothpaste to get most of the grease back out :eek: - for weeks afterwards his party trick was to squeeze his thumbnail and deposit more grease on the table/ beer mat/ squeaky hinge...

That was not grease

It was gangerenous pus eekkk, which I know from some experience, looks like and smells like old cart grease

Hope he is ok, but that is one of the most dangerous things, high pressure injection of fluids into the skin, at college they told us to allways 'look' for leaks from High Pressure systems with a bit of cardboard, much safer than using your hand.

 

[Blurk99]

about 5 years ago i was decorating our lads bedroom, plastering, carpeting, skirtings, everything... he came in and asked me if i wanted a coffee, trouble is he asked just as the hammer was going down to fix the carpet gripper, missed the intended nail and mashed my hand instead, my left middle finger had the head of a holding nail forced into it, all my other fingers were hammered onto the grippy nails i couldn't get my hand off and blood was pouring out of the nail bed of my middle finger

our lad learned a few new words that day, and later when he was trying to help he got his long (i say girly...) hair caught in the cordless drill chuck, he basically hit himself in the side of his head as it 'reeled' his hair in and fell off a step ladder, that made me laugh my **** off...

jim

 

[Lawnmowerboy]

Lol

 

[Wedg1e]

That was not grease

It was gangerenous pus eekkk, which I know from some experience, looks like and smells like old cart grease

Hope he is ok, but that is one of the most dangerous things, high pressure injection of fluids into the skin, at college they told us to allways 'look' for leaks from High Pressure systems with a bit of cardboard, much safer than using your hand.

As far as I recall his hand made a complete recovery (must have been early 80's when he did it). Apparently the high-pressure water-jetting industry throws up some 'interesting' injuries where there's very little external damage evident but the internal tissues can be shredded...

 

[nickk]

I used to know an old boy who lit his fag off welding rods before health and safety spoiled the party, iv had crushed fingers, endless eye problems, and nearly lost my thumb by falling against the workshop window, a few hours surgeory later they stiched the tendons back together and as good as new, the one that sticks in my mind was when loading a new spool of wire into the drive unit, on the big machine its got a 4x4 roller system with a motor the size of a breeze block and fast load button, without thinking i pulled the wire across hit the button with my finger still against the roller, it grabed pulled my finger in through the first set of rollers and half into the second set jaming it flat and leaveing me traped in the drive, after trying to pull my finger out for about ten minutes with no luck, i decided there was one thing for it hit the button again and feed it out through the second set of rollers, I now have the side missing from my ring finger,

One of the reps came around last week and was walking like, john wayne he then told me he had been gardening at the weekend he was pulling out some euphorbia then used the "gents" that evening a certain part of his body swelled to the size of his arm, when he went to the doctors they examined him in great detail untel in his words he was crying like a baby, AHHHHHHHHH

private parts the size of his arm? i say" leave the the swelling doctor ! " I'll try & live with it for a few days then shrink it.

 

[chunkolini]

This thread will run and run.

 

[sean-1]

But what about Paul Daniels, circular saw cutting wood to make a new trick and he cuts his finger off. Trip to the hospital and he gets it sewn back on....well thats what I call magic

 

[Robotstar5]

But what about Paul Daniels, circular saw cutting wood to make a new trick and he cuts his finger off. Trip to the hospital and he gets it sewn back on....

Wonder how long it took him to convince them at the hospital he really had cut his finger off?

 

[KemppiFrog]

I got involved with a poster gallery. To meet our opening deadline we were working late cutting the glass (2,500 frame jobs in just over a week) Picking up a full sheet, it shattered. The guy helping me got a shard in his palm. Claret everywhere. I was going to rush him off, but he said no. Puffed hard on ciggy and shoved it in the wound to cauterise it. Blood slowed down , so he puffed again and did it a second time (the smell was something else) That stopped it, so he insisted on carrying on with the glass. He came from an obscure area in the north of Portugal where they make em tough.. He also limped from a bust ankle that had not been set..
KF

 

[chunkolini]

Kempifrog
I just barfed onto my key board.

 

[KemppiFrog]

Sorry about that
I have managed, so far, to stay out of A+E and hospitals in general.
But about the same time as the glass incident, I was working on some 30s repro steel windows. Stepping thro an unglazed one I missed my footing and ran my shin down the hard angle iron corner. Hopped around for a bit in a blue haze, then got on. Notice a few minuits later my boot was squelching. Raised trouser, lots of blood in boot. Raised trouser a bit more, nasty gash in shin with small bit of tubing hanging out leaking said blood. Uh Ah.. There was a pharmacy down the road a bit, so I limped off there and gave the girl a list of stuff. She asked me why I needed it, so I raised the trouser (again) and showed her. Gave a shrill squeek and dashed out the back. The other was made of sterner stuff and gave me what I wanted. Since it was nearly 4 o'c, I took the rest of the day off...

Some years earlier, I stopped for lunch while rebuilding a Mini Moke in Faro. Nice sardines in a bread roll. Used the new Wilkinson pruning knife for the job, very sharp. Cleaning the blade by running it through some paper towel held between my thumb and forefinger. Need I go on? Sliced the ball off my thumb, and I didn't even feel it. Taped it back on with masking tape. Still there.

Minor stuff compared with some of the stories here. Over on the wooden boat forum in the US, in a similar thread about being carefull, a pic was posted of a guy that got too close to a big lathe. The only bit that was recognisable in the hamburger that was the top half of his body, was an eyeball. That really brought it home.
KF

 

[bill_gj]

Well... I waaas jus gowin ter have me lunch....now I'm not so sure

 

[mowersman]

Andrew's helpful tip of the week...
Don't argue with angle grinders.

5 stitches outside and 4 inside the upper lip, where it flipped my lip up and started grinding in there. Was trying to grind away a weld I had just done and it kicked back into m face. Glad of my safety glasses, otherwise I'd probably only have one eye. Also lucky wit was a thick grinding disk, rather then a 1mm slitting disk.
Remember folks, take care.
Andrew

 

[Wedg1e]

But what about Paul Daniels, circular saw cutting wood to make a new trick and he cuts his finger off. Trip to the hospital and he gets it sewn back on....well thats what I call magic

Oh-ho-ho-ho, I'm going to make my middle finger disappear! Bend over, Debbie...

 

[KemppiFrog]

Back in the early 70s, a mate and me built a mid engined sports racer. We trailed it to the airfield for test runs. A few young lads had helped with the GRP body so gave them a go. One was 16, could drive a car but was a biker. The car was very low and had no windscreen at that time. As his sight line was about knee height he completely misjudged the distace left on the main runway. Braked far to late and slide off the end through a barbed wire fence. We ran over, I got there first, really worried at what I would find, no movement, blood spattered all over the place. I expected to find his head off from the wire. Pulled his head back gently and he was muttering. 'Slightly' relieved I got him out and had a closer look. The top strand had been cut by the rearview mirror (on a tripod) and the end had peeled the backs off his gloves, plus the leather off the top of the wheel, then flicked through the corner of his mouth. Widened his smile by about an inch. His hands, not more than a light scratch. Rushed him round to the local medic, who stitched him up (bit bad tempered, as it was a Sunday) Then had to deliver him back to his family. Father was the local vicar.....and less than amused at it.
Car was fine and mate still uses it for hill climbs.
KF

 

[tttonyyy]

I think the nastiest one I've heard about was on a farm I used to work on as a kid, the farmer was out with one of the farm hands, putting in fence posts with a pile driver. You can see where this is going can't you?

Anyway, he had his hand on top of the post when the farm hand applied the pile driver, crushed his middle two fingers to paste. Had to have them amputated at the knuckle.

Another story that H&S wouldn't be happy about - my dad used to work on the jet engine test beds at Rolls Royce, one of the beds had a huge run of ducting to take the exhaust outside of the test bed. If you did any work in the ducting you took key to the starter with you so no-one would start an engine with you in there.

Anyway, one apprentice forgot the golden rule, so to remind him of the importance of this they ran the engine up on the starter (no fuel).

Apparently they'd never seen anyone run so fast!

 

[bill_gj]

Well, I was using a cup brush in my angle grinder. Nice gloves, thick shirt, but as I was a bit sweaty, sleeves rolled up. This was about six weeks ago, when there was that warm spell.
Got some tennis elbow pain, so the grip on the grinder wasn't great.
The workpiece - under the rear wheelarch of my son's '94 Panda, attacking rust, and lots of it.

Suddenly, brush snagged, feeble grip, brush jumped, ran across the back of nice leather gloves and up my arm.
Just took the skin off and a tiny bit of meat.
Had to have A&E clean the rust out and give me a tetanus top-up, no stitching.
Photo was after the dressing came off about a week later.

 

[steviec_lj]

Making some brackets for Fire Extinguishers, First Aid Kits and Burns Kits for the garage come workshop.

8mmx40mm Flat Bar at 435mm long. Cut with the grinder and shaped with the bench grinder to remove all the nasty sharp edges and round the ends to make them look pretty. 3 fixing holes per bar, as the extinguishers are the big ones, so they were 5mm holes, countersunk to hide the screw heads a little.

I thought to get a little extra penetration on the bar, I would partially drill into it, with a 5mm bit followed by a 7mm bit. All went well with the 5mm bit, and 2 further half(ish) depth holes were drilled. Swapped to the brand new 7mm bit, a bit of cutting/drilling paste and away we go. Slow and steady wins the race as they say.

After cleaning it up, I was left with this. Caused me to run on my recently operated on knee, for 50mtrs back to the house, to run under cold water, and bandage up to go to the hospital...

Entry:

Exit:

X-Ray:

Still a little bit of drill bit in there, but nothing they were too concerned about, apparently the body will push it out over the next few days. No broken bones though, which both I and the Surgeon/Doctors were impressed with. Left my Index finger quite messed up though now the swelling has set in, what should be under the skin, is slowly making its way out of the 1 inch entry wound.

A truck load of painkillers and antibiotics to take over the next month for it, along with local anaesthetic injections while they cut my finger open even more to try and retrieve the bit of metal, which incidentally hurt about the same amount as the drill bit going in. Oh and further appointments at the OutPatients clinic and physio, as they think I've damaged at least 50% of the nerve tissue in my finger.

Drill manufacturer is going to receive a letter/email strongly worded, as the bit looks to have snapped clean in half, so possibly a manufacturing fault.

 

[Tiggy_dorset]

Not very pretty, looks ouchy.
You were a little vague as to how it occured, only that you were drilling. Were you using a hand drill, pillar drill? was the piece clamped in a vice? what make were the drill bits?

My finger hurts today after I mig welded it lol. Pulled trigger, finger in the way and the wire went trough my glove and into the finger like a hot needle. My finger is nothing compared to that though.