# Worst Job Site "accident" you've witnessed.



## HandyHails (Feb 28, 2009)

I was talking to an employee about some of the worst accidents I've seen through the years. 

Got me thinking, I'll bet there are a lot of guys here who have seen some doosies.

I saw a guy nail his foot to the decking on new construction. Twice. (high)

I saw a guy shoot a 12 penny through the base of his thumb trying to nail some fascia w/ the safety off and it shot through his hand twice folding it in half. (stupid)

I saw a guy slide off of the roof while flopping it and land in the pit around the foundation that the builder never filled in until after the whole house was completed for some reason. Pit full of 2x4 braces w/ the nails still sticking out. (sawdust, and stupid)

I worked road construction for a while. I saw a guy get hit w/ the side view mirror of a big rig. Spun him around a few times and broke his shoulder blade. (naive)

I had a load of guide rail come loose on me after breaking two straps coming down an on ramp and the whole load did a 90 degree turn on the flat bed I was driving before spreading all over the highway like pickup sticks. (accidents happen to the best of me)


Your turn.

Josh


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## Jimmy Cabinet (Jan 22, 2010)

I was in the kitchen hanging cabinets and heard a scream outside. I ignored it till I heard workers yelling to call the EMTs. Turns out a guy fell off the roof and onto the pile of roofing debris with all the nails sticking up. The poor sap must have had a hundred nail holes in him. OUCH!!!!!!! I still squirm when I think about that.


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## Mike's Plumbing (Jul 19, 2010)

A guy chopped his hand off right next to me, saw the whole thing. Now I'm a vegitarian.

Mike


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## Jimmy Cabinet (Jan 22, 2010)

Mike's Plumbing said:


> A guy chopped his hand off right next to me, saw the whole thing. Now I'm a vegitarian.
> 
> Mike


I guess life dealt him a bad hand huh............


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## Mike's Plumbing (Jul 19, 2010)

Jimmy Cabinet said:


> I guess life dealt him a bad hand huh............


Geez Jimmy, ya heartless basta##:laughing:


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## Aaron Berk (Jul 10, 2010)

Mike's Plumbing said:


> A guy chopped his hand off right next to me, saw the whole thing. Now I'm a vegitarian.
> 
> Mike


Chopped it off with what???:confused1:

Miter saw, sidewinder, RAS, TS, hand saw? Drywall saw???

I wanna know what it was, shingle hatchet?


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## WarnerConstInc. (Jan 30, 2008)

I accidentally got the ho's wife pregnant.:whistling:laughing:


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## Mike's Plumbing (Jul 19, 2010)

WarnerConstInc. said:


> I accidentally got the ho's wife pregnant.:whistling:laughing:


nice:laughing:


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## Aaron Berk (Jul 10, 2010)

I lost a cheapo 16' extension ladder out the back of my truck on the interstate about a week ago.

I know it wasn't on a job-site, but I was on my way to one. The ladder got run over 2x and totally trashed.

I was praying for all I was worth that a wreck wouldn't occur

Thank god all was well.


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## Mike's Plumbing (Jul 19, 2010)

Aaron Berk said:


> Chopped it off with what???:confused1:
> 
> Miter saw, sidewinder, RAS, TS, hand saw? Drywall saw???
> 
> I wanna know what it was, shingle hatchet?


I was doing work in a factory and the guy next to me messed up and shoved his hand into a 6" diameter shaper head used to make raised panel doors for commercial office furniture.

MIke


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## Aaron Berk (Jul 10, 2010)

Mike's Plumbing said:


> I was doing work in a factory and the guy next to me messed up and shoved his hand into a 6" diameter shaper head used to make raised panel doors for commercial office furniture.
> 
> MIke


:w00t: OMG, that had ta hurt


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## Cole82 (Nov 22, 2008)

Watched my father fall of the scaffolding and dislocate his shoulder. Was an hour and a half drive to the hospital.

A guy got poked in the eye with the ground wire sticking out of a ceiling fixture. Poked a hole in the white part of the eye. Was bleeding like no tomorrow.





I have gotten hurt a couple times. Crushed my foot and broke two bones. Was crushed between the truck and enclosed trailer. The other one was on the side of the road not the job site. I was removing a hub cap on an 80's chevy truck. Pulled the hub cap off and cut all the tendons and nerves in the finger. Have pics if youcan handle it.

Cole


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## Aaron Berk (Jul 10, 2010)

Cole82 said:


> Watched my father fall of the scaffolding and dislocate his shoulder. Was an hour and a half drive to the hospital.
> 
> A guy got poked in the eye with the ground wire sticking out of a ceiling fixture. Poked a hole in the white part of the eye. Was bleeding like no tomorrow.
> 
> ...



I can handle it:clap::clap:


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## TimelessQuality (Sep 23, 2007)

Ninth grade woodshop class.. 3/4" dado setup in the unisaw. 

Slotting the back of a clock face (like 7" x 9" piece). Teacher's in his office, prolly looking at girly mags..

My friend makes his cut, makes it like 3/4 through, then loses his grip and tries to grab the piece. 

It fired across the shop, smacked the wall, and Tony goes to pick it up before he gets in trouble.. He didn't even notice the tip of his thumb was gone...

Ole Mr. Harper rolls out..."What the hell?!! YOU, go tell the office. The rest of you boys, LOOK FOR THE THUMB....We're gone!" and he wrapped up the hand took off for the hospital..

All we found was little shreds of hamburger...er uh Tonyburger...

I definitely have profound respect for the tablesaw..


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## Cole82 (Nov 22, 2008)

Aaron Berk said:


> I can handle it:clap::clap:




__
Sensitive content, not recommended for those under 18
Show Content


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 17, 2008)

hmm the two worst ive seen were 
1) a guy cutting himself with a handsaw, basically made a 4 inch gash in the back of his hand.. he said after it started to heal it looked like a stitched up pussy on the back of his hand

2) when i was straight framing custom homes for a builder one of our apprentices was coming up the extension ladder, it slid out and hit the floor he landed face first from 12 ft up, the ladder bounced and hit him on while he was still in the air... his wrist was badly sprained but nothing too serious

besides that ive heard some really nasty stories from friends of things theyve done, either falling or cutting things off. a funnier cutting things off was one of our guys cut a 3/8 hose by accident while cutting a sidewall shingle. the hose started whipping around he was spazzing, we started egging him on. he almost quit we were laughing so hard at him


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## Diamond D. (Nov 12, 2009)

30+ yrs ago like it was yesterday.
Cold winter, building a basement / crawl space.
Fires under the sand box and water barrel, as usual nothing special.

Except,
The carpenters show up to start framing a section we have finished.
The carpenter foreman, a vol. fireman, ( you know the type, pyro. ) doesn't think the fires are big enough.
He sends a laborer for a can filled with a mix of petrol, naptha and kero, so I've been told, I don't really know what was in that can.
Anyway, he plays around for a while and after he's happy, the can ends up between the fires.

Meanwhile, everyone is going about their usual routine, when a block delivery shows up, no big deal, the driver has been there before and goes about unloading the cubes, when all of a sudden we hear a loud shhhhhhhh.
We look over to see flames shooting out of the can in a plume at the truck driver. He is consumed and running around like a mad man, He runs over by me, I knock him down and jump on him to try to smother the flames, in seconds he literally throws me 20 feet, gets up and runs back to the truck. At which point the laborer throws a bucket of hot water on him and puts him out.

WOW, that was an intense couple of minutes, in reality, it was probably less than a minute.

Though, badly burnt the driver was in good spirits, although I think he knew he was in bad shape.
The foreman / fireman drove him to the hospital about 1/2 hour away. I think he made it in 15 minutes, what with his blue flashy light and all. Later he was transferred to the C.C. Burn Center.

This all happened around Thanksgiving. He hung on till Christmas Eve. RIP

That's just about as bad as it gets IMHO.


2nd worst accident, I mentioned on a post in "RS broken leg" thread.

Thanks for reading, D.


Post #139 www.contractortalk.com/f22/broken-leg-84898/index7/


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## RobertCDF (Aug 18, 2005)

I rode a ladder down a 16' wall from the top, hit the sill at the bottom and stopped fast... of course I did not stop so fast and bounced my face off the ladder. My lead guy stuck a worm drive in his thigh just a few weeks ago, missed the bone, artery, and muscle. Another guy barely clipped the tip of his finger with a chop saw a couple days after the lead guys leg. I have also had someone pull a 12D gun nail out of my thumb. I have pulled a 16ga nail out of my other thumb (and the fingernail) I have pulled 2 18ga nails out of my thumb too... Hmmm... I see a trend emerging...


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## Mitch M (Dec 4, 2006)

Watched another Supt step through the metal roof top and fell. Fell on top of the metal stud wall below and then flipped over and landed on his knees. Knocked him only briefly. Another Supt carried him to hospital. He was out for several weeks but healed up.


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## dougger222 (Jan 29, 2004)

On Monday my brother fell off the ladder and then it hit him on top of the head. Busted his head open, lots of blood. On the ride to the hospital kept asking what happened. Also needed a few stiches on his chin.

Most of my family roofs first time we've had one bust there head open.

My dad broke his ankle, Uncle broke his leg and shattered his knee cap, Cousin broke his leg.

Know a roofer who put his hand into a skylight. Another who shattered both ankles.

My dad saw a sider fall off the plank once and some of his bone was sticking out.

Seen both my brother and dad fall off the roof twice.


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## Snobnd (Jul 1, 2008)

I watched as a Saw (Shim in the guard) cut thru a guys leg when it kicked back. "Lots of Blood".


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## Jimmy Cabinet (Jan 22, 2010)

Snobnd said:


> I watched as a Saw (Shim in the guard) cut thru a guys leg when it kicked back. "Lots of Blood".


Why do so many of you guys (mostly framers) shim back the circular saw guard? That has got to be the most dangerous thing I can think of. I seen some guys remove or shim back the guard on miter saws too. I remember a guy did this on a 12" Bosch miter saw. I just watched this big hairy blade so close to his fingers and cringed.


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## KellyD&B (May 4, 2009)

I watched my friend cut his finger off while using a radial arm saw. He was wearing heavy work gloves and cutting up scrap wood. He cut through the glove and left a finger inside it...

Once saw a guy using an old chop saw with no blade guard building a deck. He had the saw on the ground and was kneeling down to make a cut. He somehow hit the blade with his knee when getting up and was cut up pretty bad.


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## avguy (Feb 8, 2010)

Cut off the tip of my finger with a brand new utility knife while repairing a sprinkler line.
Bled with such force I lost my balance and fell on the concrete floor.

I taped it back together and got on with it.
After a year you almost can't tell it happened. (almost)


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## deckman22 (Oct 20, 2007)

Worse accident I saw was at a steel foundry in Ohio, a guy got squashed by a crane unloading a huge mold onto a shaker machine, killed on the spot. 

On my framing crew a guy fell from the top plate on the slab landing on his back, breaking his back.

Down the street from my job a punch out carpenter 6 months from retirement was cutting a hole for a vent in the water heater door. His circular saw bound up & kicked back onto this thigh. Split his leg down to the bone. Took 3 1/2 spools of thread to sew him back up.


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## Hibernia86 (Sep 16, 2009)

Not on a job, but when I was in high school I was making boxes for a project with 5/8 ply. I didn't quite push the piece all the way through the table saw, and when I too my hand off to hit the power button the saw shot a square foot of plywood into my twig and giggle berries. I remember laying on the floor with tunnel vision and not breathing for probably two minutes. Left a terrible bruise too.

Worst thing on a job was one of our guys slipped on some scaffold and crushed a testicle. Popped it actually.


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## DPCII (Mar 14, 2010)

When I was a teenager working concrete forms.

We had finished 95% of stripping a house. Truck was loaded and the only things left were to snap the ties, scrape the tops, and general clean up.

These were T and Wedge forms where the ends of the snap ties stick out either side of the concrete. The owner started the truck to get it warmed up. The truck was parked at the top of the ramp the digger used to get his machine out of the hole. The owner accidentally hit the shifter and it went into neutral and started rolling down the ramp. 

A fully loaded form truck pinned one of the guys against the wall and snap ties sticking out. I was inside breaking ties when it happened. When I saw the guy, I puked on the spot. He was dead on site.


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## atrawlings (Feb 9, 2009)

_ Popped it actually._

WINNER!


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## Snobnd (Jul 1, 2008)

Jimmy Cabinet said:


> Why do so many of you guys (mostly framers) shim back the circular saw guard? That has got to be the most dangerous thing I can think of. I seen some guys remove or shim back the guard on miter saws too. I remember a guy did this on a 12" Bosch miter saw. I just watched this big hairy blade so close to his fingers and cringed.


 
I don't get the logic behind it.
But all the safety equipment stays in place on my Jobs - OR it doesn't come out of the Truck.
Extension cords get cut. floors gets ruined, or worse! 
It takes very little time to work with it.


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## woodchuck2 (Feb 27, 2008)

I was working for a local ski area about 15yrs ago running a rock drill with a couple other guys. We were told by the supervisor to use the snow making hose to run the drill off the snow making air line. One of the 2" hoses blew apart at the coupling and began flailing around, one of the other guys turned to see what happened and took a coupling in the face from the flailing hose. Smashed most of his teeth out, broke his jaw, ripped his upper lip half off, broke his nose and cracked his skull. He spent over a week in the hospital over it. Damn ski area tried to blame him at the Comp hearing for using the wrong hose when the proper hose wasnt even purchased until after the accident. The 3rd guy and myself had to testify in court that the ski area was negligent by instructing us to use the wrong hose.


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## Brutus (May 29, 2007)

We were building a house on a hill once, the front of it being on the high side, so mainlevel was about level with the ground, and the back was 10 foot high wall. New guy on site, and we had just finished cutting all the joist, and were getting ready to install them. I walked the back wall to nail them, and got the new guy to nail the front as we went along. I told him to make sure he kept his hand out of the way so he didn't nail himself. 3 joist in, I hear... "Chris... I think... uhh... I think I nailed myself" uhhh what dude?!?!? "yea I think I did" He shows me his finger... he sure did. The boss threw the guy in a car with the labourer and they went to the emerg. First day... 3rd joist... I think thats a record.

About 3 or 4 months into my first job, I was doing reno's. Doing a re-side, and we didnt have pump jacks, just regular pipe staging, we were taking it all down, and I was climbing down, on about the 4th lift, so what, like 20 feet up? And my partner lets the x bracing go on his side I rocked back and forth, got scared, thinking I was going down with it, I threw myself off away from the staging.... landed pretty hard, got the wind knocked out of me... My partner runs down, asks if anything was broken, nope... put me in his truck, gave me a beer, and a cigarette... and says "***** it, it's friday, lets go to the tavern" could of been way worse... thank god it wasn't.

Last one... so we decided to try and wrap the house with the tyvek before we lifted the walls. We got the sider to come over, and do it. There was a window right above the stairwell, and the sider saw it, wrapped the wall, somewhat cut out that window, but forgot. cam back to finish stapling off the tyvek, and stepped on the half cut out window, and fell 9 or 10 feet to a concrete floor covered in ice. Said he was ok, but I guess that night he went to the emerge, and the safety officer got really really angry with us when she found out...


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## UALocal1Plumber (Jun 19, 2009)

I have one to top it all. I worked as a contractor for 4 years in the Amtrak tunnels going under the East River and Hudson river leading to Penn Station. We had a runaway piece of equipment that was owned by Amtrak hit our rigs. It was a rail crane that weighed about 250 tons.

Our equipment was 4 flatbed trucks with hi rail gear. All of the plumbers were able to get off the trucks in time for the impact, but 3 QC engineers got caught up in it, and the the teamsters weren't able to get out of their trucks in time.

One engineer had his leg pulled off like a polly-o string cheese. They put it back on, but a lot of tissue was missing, and one leg is shorter than the other. He also had to battle infection for 2 years, a ton of railroad grease got lodged in the wounded flesh.

Another had his collarbone snap out of his chest and stick out 8 inches.

One engineer flipped over and in between the truck and equipment and in a major miracle landed within the gauge, no further contact with equipment and just walked away with bruises.

A teamster was sleeping (big surprise there) and was lying down on the bench seat of his truck. The steering column was rammed with such force that it smashed through the rear window of his cab, and he was trapped by the dashboard and steering column. Had to be cut out with the jaws, but he was OK for the most part. If he was sitting up he would have been cut in half.

The cause of the accident was a poorly maintained rail crane. The brakes malfunctioned, and the operator leaped off for his own safety. He didn't call it in, and 13 minutes later the piece hit our crew. Plenty of time to avoid any human injury. That's the federal government at work.

Work safely,
Keith


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## Cole (Aug 27, 2004)

I had to stop by a job on a Sunday morning as the decking crew was going to be there on Monday to start sheathing the roof. There was a joist sticking outside the roof that I had to make a roof cut on so the decking would clear. I got myself positioned on top and started to make the roof cut and the saw blade, bounded and it kicked back at me, it was either taking it in the stomach or the hand, I chose the hand. Now let me tell you I grew up using circular saws with the guards pinned back. It's what everyone did and I always told myself, you are smart / careful nothing will ever happen. Boy was I wrong. It took 2 different hospitals and 2 great surgeons to make it useful again plus about 2 years of recovery.


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## CookeCarpentry (Feb 26, 2009)

Was working as a carpentry sub for a high end builder a few years ago. Setting windows and doors....next thing I know I see a body fall from above and hit the ground....it was the roofer who slid off of a 3 story high building...died on the way to the hospital.

The roofing company and the GC I was subbing for got hit with huge fines and lawsuits, I never did do any work for them again....


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## goneelkn (Jan 9, 2010)

When i was 15 working for a chicken roaster at a drag strip. Clutch blew on dragster, one girl cut in half with piece of clutch plate, two others died. Quarter second sooner is would have been us.


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## camaroman2125 (Apr 13, 2006)

> I didn't quite push the piece all the way through the table saw, and when I too my hand off to hit the power button the saw shot a square foot of plywood into my twig and giggle berries. I remember laying on the floor with tunnel vision and not breathing for probably two minutes. Left a terrible bruise too.


Our shop class teacher got it in the family jewels by a belt sander that had the trigger locked in the on position. A kid set it on the shop table to plug it in and once he did the sander took off and smacked the teacher right in the jewels. The teacher went down like a ton of bricks, and it took him awhile to come around but once he did he started cussing like a sailor at us.

My dad also cut open my uncle's thigh with a circular saw because he had the guard pinned back. Dad has a bad habit of swinging the saw back once he's done cutting and my uncle was walking behind him. 

I wasn't there for this one but another uncle cut off 4 of his fingers with a on miter saw and almost bled to death. If it wasn't for the trucker passing by that saw him trying to flag someone down he would have died right on the job. 

Also seen a guy smack his melon on a asphalt driveway after the ladder he didn't set up properly kicked out on him and he fell. We thought he was dead but finally started moving. He broke his back, a few ribs, both his wrists, and had a concussion. Still to this day he can't use either of his wrists normally, he has double vision from the brain damage, and cannot work.


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## JohnFRWhipple (Oct 20, 2009)

*Loosing a man to the wood chipper*

I never saw it first hand but a few summers back here in Vancouver a young worker went through a commercial wood chipper.

The dude was stuffing the feeder or fell on the feed table. This chipper was an older model with no emergency bump break.


Went right through - gross....


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## Cutonce (Oct 1, 2010)

Jimmy Cabinet said:


> Why do so many of you guys (mostly framers) shim back the circular saw guard? That has got to be the most dangerous thing I can think of. I seen some guys remove or shim back the guard on miter saws too. I remember a guy did this on a 12" Bosch miter saw. I just watched this big hairy blade so close to his fingers and cringed.


I've had a couple of guys doing this with saws on my jobs. I hate it and tell them not to, but well ya know how that goes. They say and I can understand to a certain point, that it interferes with their site line on a pencil mark, plus if you are using some saws one handed when the guard contacts the lumber it sometimes moves the saw. Massive risk for little reward I say.

I havent had or seen any bad accidents, only come close. Once had a Russian guy at a party run up to me and say, "I heard you are GC, Im carpenter look. You should call me" and proudly held up a hand with 2 fingers missing!

Many years ago I was building a 3 story staging which was at the end of a tiny alley that we were walking all the scaffolding down. I came out of the alley with a section and I as I walk out I hear "whoosh thud" and then hear from a voice above "lookout!" little late, he'd dropped a section from the third floor and it missed me by a whisper and stuck in the ground right behind me. Actually if he called out "lookout" in time I probably would have stopped to see what I needed to lookout for and it would have killed me.

Last near miss was working late on a Saturday afternoon on a flip Id bought in a "pioneering" neighborhood. I had two guys working with me, one on the roof the other was passing material up to him and I was the cut man. All of a sudden a guy appears in the yard 10 yards from me with a ski mask on and a 45 upside down, pointed at my head. He shouts out "give me your wallets and no one gets hurt". My guys looked over and laughed and carried on working! So I figure I'll do the same, and continue measuring out a 2X ready to cut. Im looking out the corner of my eye and this guy is just standing there with the gun. Suddenly he pulls up the mask! and says "well I was only joking, if I'd meant it Id have blown your head off" He starts backing out of the yard and I think, "was he joking? nah can't be" So I drop my tool belt and pick up a 2X and start heading for him. He's shouting "stop or I'll blow your head off" I get so close I can see the rifling down the barrel. I'm thinking anytime now my guys will be here to back me up and we'll jump this mother..nothing, the onetime I want them to stop working and they don't, they just carry on. It weird how your mind works in these situations. I'm thinking "ok I can probably jump him from here and get the gun, and even if he does get a round off I can probably survive it and hold on to him long enough for the boys to jump him". By now he has backed up and I have followed him all the way down the alley and still no one is there and still he hasn't pulled the trigger. Suddenly he turns and takes off. My cell phone was in my truck so I ran back called them and ran back down the alley. The cops just happened to be in the neighborhood on another call, so within seconds of me calling 911 there are 5 cop cars flying down the road. They never found him but one car comes back to the jobsite to make out the report. I walk in the yard with the cop car coming up behind me and my guys, still working look at me in total shock and ask what have I done now! I incredulously say "um the [email protected]!cking guy with the gun! "oh that was real!!" they exclaim. Turns out they had seen the guy walking down the street. He had looked over at them and the guy had nodded his head in a "how ya doing" way, so when he turned up in the yard they thought he was someone I knew and was having a joke and that we'd gone off down the alley chatting! Funniest thing was one of my guys tells the cop. "what a dumbass, its Saturday evening, we are working and he thinks WE have money!"


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## tcleve4911 (Mar 26, 2006)

This thread should be closed........

This is bad Karma..............:sad:


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## Sir Mixalot (Jan 6, 2008)

Cole said:


> I had to stop by a job on a Sunday morning as the decking crew was going to be there on Monday to start sheathing the roof. There was a joist sticking outside the roof that I had to make a roof cut on so the decking would clear. I got myself positioned on top and started to make the roof cut and the saw blade, bounded and it kicked back at me, it was either taking it in the stomach or the hand, I chose the hand. Now let me tell you I grew up using circular saws with the guards pinned back. It's what everyone did and I always told myself, you are smart / careful nothing will ever happen. Boy was I wrong. It took 2 different hospitals and 2 great surgeons to make it useful again plus about 2 years of recovery.


Damnit man!:shutup:
Still better than taking it to the stomach I'm sure.


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## Steve Richards (Mar 7, 2006)

I WAS gonna have sausage and eggs this morning.

Why do I read here before breakfast?


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## Steve Richards (Mar 7, 2006)

I'm gonna go buy some donuts, and send Cole the bill!


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## loneframer (Feb 13, 2009)

I saw a guy fall backwards from about 4' and stick his speed square into his abdomen, left of center. It was facing point up in his belt. As he lay on the deck, moaning, I told him to get up before his dad (the boss) saw him laying down on the job.

He pulled up his T-shirt and had a gash about big enough to slip an average sized envelope into. I saw more of his internals than I'd care to talk about.:blink: He was on the second floor and we had to get him down by extension ladder, all 240+ lbs. of him.:furious:

At the hospital, they had to enlarge the incision to clean the wound and check for internal injuries. Not a pretty scar.:no:


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 17, 2008)

jesus, lone, i almost had that happen 2 days before xmas break, i was putting short pieces of harti on,,, 8" long or something between a window and the corner post, i was up on a multiladder which folded (cheap ladder), i tried to kick the ladder out of the way mid air but landed sideways across the ladder. hurt like hell my ribs were bruised up .... the next day i went ot pull out my speed square it had snapped in half

speaking of right before xmas in 2005 i sliced my left thumb pretty good cutting a cedar shingle for a woven corner the last day before xmas break

the following year we were putting trusses on the top plate, i was down on the floor swinging the stupid end around and the lead was walking up a truss to get up on the plate to lay it there. the trusses he was walking up slid and he came down, the truss we had in our hands swung around and knocked me off balance, i went to the floor and the truss landed on me i was all wrapped up in it like a pretzel. needless to say i hate the last week before xmas. ive been rather motivated to go count nails in the shop that time of year


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## loneframer (Feb 13, 2009)

woodworkbykirk said:


> jesus, lone, i almost had that happen 2 days before xmas break, i was putting short pieces of harti on,,, 8" long or something between a window and the corner post, i was up on a multiladder which folded (cheap ladder), i tried to kick the ladder out of the way mid air but landed sideways across the ladder. hurt like hell my ribs were bruised up .... the next day i went ot pull out my speed square it had snapped in half


 Lucky man, if you can call that luck.:laughing:

This boner was using half of a HO extension ladder, missing the third rung.:no: I heard some commotion as he got tangled in the ladder and saw him hit the deck on his left side, with the ladder wrapped around his leg. It was a 3 stooges moment and I laughed at first. When I saw the gap in his belly, I felt a bit ill.


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## loneframer (Feb 13, 2009)

I've only had minor injuries on the job, mostly back related, but knocked myself out twice.

First time, I was pulling a 12D HDG out of a double plate. It was being stubborn, so I hung all my weight on the cats paw, with my feet a few inches off the ladder rung. The head popped off the nail and next thing I know, I'm getting up off of the floor. Perfect hexagon mark on the center of my forehead.:laughing:

Second time, I had a framing square on the horses, with the tail hanging over the far edge of some 2x8s. I went to toss a 24' treated 2x12 on the horses, next to the 2x8s. It flipped the square into my left eyebrow. I saw lightning, storm clouds, then total darkness. Again, I found myself getting up off of the ground.:blink:


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## HandyHails (Feb 28, 2009)

I saw a guy knock himself out yanking bracing after we decked the second floor of the unit we were framing. Some kind of way the dummy was swinging his new 23oz craftsman waffle head california framer up and toward himself and completely missed the brace. Left a nice half moon on his forehead all wafflely and stuff.


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## oldfrt (Oct 10, 2007)

I happened by one of my competitors while he was working on
his own house just in time to see him fall from about 12' from off 
his roof.
He tried breaking his fall with his hands and his 
wrist got turned around about 180*.
I kept him from trying to get up as I didn't see if he hit his head 
or not.
His wife comes running out screaming at him,calling him an idiot.
I sent her away to call 911 while I tried to keep him calm.
It wasn't a pretty sight.
Straddling a the hip of a low pitched roof over his porch with an 
open step ladder,wasn't the best way to reach the returns on the gable above it.


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## Ashcon (Apr 28, 2009)

A few years back we were building my house, setting steel beam into position. 

42' long (I should have known better) the two of us were rolling it to move it into final position, the beam had a bow and would not cooperate.

The beam rolled and I shouted to get clear, he wasn't fast enough, got his little finger between the beam and foundation.

I saw the bone in his finger and the tip was dangling.  

Looks fine now!

Fast forward a few years, ( he had worked for someone else and come back to work for me) Fourth day back on site framing out a basement.

He was ripping some 2x with the skil saw he reajusted the piece didn't wait for the saw to stop spinning? 
Cut two fingers, not off but all jacked up. He was back to work the next day.

Great guy just sometimes not so bright!


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 17, 2008)

lol, in regards to knocking oneself out... when i was just starting out i was using the recip to cut spikes that were holding the sheathing ledger for a porch roof... the saw kicked and the handle popped me in the chin. i was blacked out for a few seconds but recovered,, in the process i split my chin open but nothing major.. one of the guys asked whys my chin bleeding .

responded " uuuuhhh i sneezed while shaving this morning and cut myself." he laughed yah sure i saw you get yourself with the recip.... and i didnt shave that morning....:blink:


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## dave_dj1 (Mar 16, 2010)

Snobnd said:


> I don't get the logic behind it.
> But all the safety equipment stays in place on my Jobs - OR it doesn't come out of the Truck.
> Extension cords get cut. floors gets ruined, or worse!
> It takes very little time to work with it.


I do it only with electric brake saws, the old days my B&D supersaws would stop instantly. the reason we do it is because the damn things are designed all wrong, the guard gets hung up going into a cut on an angled crosscut. musch quicker to have it out of the way sometimes. I don't always have it that way but when the job warrants it I do. The same reason that 99% of people don't use the guard on a tablesaw, PIA!
In over 30 years of building, I have never had an incident with a circular saw going out of control. I just am extra cautious.


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## Tinstaafl (Jan 6, 2008)

dave_dj1 said:


> In over 30 years of building, I have never had an incident with a circular saw going out of control. I just am extra cautious.


Understood, but now maybe you shouldn't go to work tomorrow. :laughing:


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## dave_dj1 (Mar 16, 2010)

A long time ago on a project I was working on, not one of my guys but another crew's, the guy was cutting 2x6 t&g for a pool enclosure and dropped the wormdrive right on his upper leg, cut him deep and long. I remember after hearing about it I was nausious.


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## dave_dj1 (Mar 16, 2010)

Tinstaafl said:


> Understood, but now maybe you shouldn't go to work tomorrow. :laughing:


 I was planning on taking tomorrow off anyway, HO is up and I don't want to disturb them, and I could use a rest.:laughing:


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 17, 2008)

another horror story i remember, was my old neighbor's cousin. his cousin was working for a roofing company out west. they were stripping a flat roof on a 4 story building, he was working at the edge peeling upthe layers. anyhow he fell.. landed on his FEET he had over 300 hairline fractures in his entire body, he layed in a hospital bed for over 6 months, when he told me about he sayed 4 years later even walking hurts:wheelchair:


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## Brutus (May 29, 2007)

joke I heard that relates to the thread..

what does this mean?!









A bad carpenter ordering a beer for himself and his 4 buddies...


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## Diamond D. (Nov 12, 2009)

If we're talking about our own stupid selves and close calls,
I was pouring a pool deck one time but first had to get the backwash pipe buried and through a utility pole retaining wall.
So I'm banging away with hammer and very sharp wood chisel, I'm almost through and running out of room to hold the chisel.
It's wedged in there pretty good, so I let go and give it a couple of really good wackes...

Next thing I know, I'm coming to. The chisel flew out, did at least 1/2 a turn and hit me right between the eyes on the upper part of my nose. To this day I have a nice dent on the top of my nose.

I hate to think what would have happened, had the chisel made another 1/2 turn. :shutup: 



I hate to admit it, but I'm guilty of the missing table saw guard. (only safety feature I misuse).
Then one time, I looked away for a split second while reaching for the piece and lightly touched the blade, didn't feel a thing.
I was lucky only 4 stitches.

D.


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## kj6887 (May 23, 2010)

on a large fitness center for a hospital in the pool the painting contractor had a scissor lift that would not go up due to the slop. so their boss jacked one end up with a pallet jack so it would go up. ( of course he didnt go up in it ) so while they were 20 plus feet up the jack failed and over the lift went ! broken bones for both of em


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## Splinter (Apr 5, 2005)

Im guilty of knocking myself out once also... Went to work trimming a living room one morning, had to pass through the unfinished kitchen area to get there. About 1pm Im rushing out to get something from the trailer and walked right into the new upper cabinets next to the doorway... They werent there when I started that morning.

The cabinet installers said I was out cold for about 3 minutes. I had such a headache, I took the afternoon off.


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## nailit69 (Sep 8, 2010)

Few years back on a commercial job, sheeting a roof, saw a whole unit of 1/2" ply fall after a 2x4 roof rack collapsed, crushed and killed a kid, 20 yrs old, nice guy, sad.

Needless to say... I don't stack ply on the roof anymore.

On a lighter note, i've seen some guys do some pretty stupid stuff.

Guy on an extension ladder drilling beams through red iron with a holehawg...he did three full spins before he let go and fell 15' or so.

Another fool sticks his finger in a saddle as a huge beam is coming down to get a chunk of wood out... lost his finger.

One of the first I ever saw, total derp walks off of 2nd story wall backwards and falls into 12' deep elevator pit catching his arm on an anchor bolt on the way down, 1" deep gash from his elbow to his wrist. That was his 3rd serious accident in 4 weeks, he was let go after that one, walking accident he was!


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## UALocal1Plumber (Jun 19, 2009)

This guy's hardcore.

http://www.nothingtoxic.com/media/1287468684/Russian_Guy_Made_To_Hack_Off_Thumb_With_Axe


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## BKFranks (Feb 19, 2008)

I've seen an illegal nail his hand with a framing nailer. 

I've also seen a kid step on drywall attached to the underside of rafters land his crotch right on the rafter. Oh, there were nails sticking out of the rafter too. It was a remodel and we were tying in to the existing roof. Kid was told to only step on the rafters...didn't listen.


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## MAD Renovations (Nov 18, 2007)

I would have thought there would be more blood.


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## FramingPro (Jan 31, 2010)

omg yesterday i was nailing some forms together at 930 at night and i smashed my thumb so damn hard with the handle just under the head of my hammer, its one of those 1/4" thick steel handles and oh my **** that hurt. i did not sleep at all, the doctor could not pop it and now its so painful... im supposed to shingle next week. 
how do i fix this


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## Brutus (May 29, 2007)

FramingPro said:


> omg yesterday i was nailing some forms together at 930 at night and i smashed my thumb so damn hard with the handle just under the head of my hammer, its one of those 1/4" thick steel handles and oh my **** that hurt. i did not sleep at all, the doctor could not pop it and now its so painful... im supposed to shingle next week.
> how do i fix this


Under the nail? If so steralize a safety pin, heat it with a lighter, and lightly push it through the nail. Don't push too hard or you will drive it right through your thumb... find something to bite down on, and have a bottle of something to drink after. (I'd choose rum... but that's just me)

Also, watch out for the squirting blood.


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## FramingPro (Jan 31, 2010)

Brutus said:


> Under the nail? If so steralize a safety pin, heat it with a lighter, and lightly push it through the nail. Don't push too hard or you will drive it right through your thumb... find something to bite down on, and have a bottle of something to drink after. (I'd choose rum... but that's just me)
> 
> Also, watch out for the squirting blood.


ye, i just touch it right just to get through?


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## Brutus (May 29, 2007)

FramingPro said:


> ye, i just touch it right just to get through?


if you got the needle hot enough, yes.

Hurts like a S.O.B


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## skyhook (Mar 17, 2007)

*hardhat area*

Hardhats, they do come in handy sometimes.


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## rselectric1 (Sep 20, 2009)

WHOA BOYS!

This is something that a doctor should be involved with, not your internet buddies.

There are WAY too many things that can go wrong with a home remedy such as this one.


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## Brutus (May 29, 2007)

skyhook said:


> Hardhats, they do come in handy sometimes.


Damn. What caused theat?

Reminds me of the video of a guy we hired on, he didn't even shoot 10 nails, before I hear... "I think I shot myself" (and yes, we did show him and teach him how to use the gun). Apparently there is a video of him at the hospital getting the nail removed saying "sometimes I do real stupid things"


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## Sir Mixalot (Jan 6, 2008)

FramingPro said:


> omg yesterday i was nailing some forms together at 930 at night and i smashed my thumb so damn hard with the handle just under the head of my hammer, its one of those 1/4" thick steel handles and oh my **** that hurt. i did not sleep at all, the doctor could not pop it and now its so painful... im supposed to shingle next week.
> how do i fix this


Nick, If it's still hurting that bad. Go back to the doctor or Emergency room and get it checked out.:thumbsup:

-Paul


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## BamBamm5144 (Jul 12, 2008)

Saw some guys framing in a roof deck, guy started to go, had the nailer in his hand and nailed right through his hand to stop him. 

Would've been one hell of a fall.


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## FramingPro (Jan 31, 2010)

Brutus said:


> if you got the needle hot enough, yes.
> 
> Hurts like a S.O.B


wait the clip hurts or if you go to far


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## FramingPro (Jan 31, 2010)

Sir Mixalot said:


> Nick, If it's still hurting that bad. Go back to the doctor or Emergency room and get it checked out.:thumbsup:
> 
> -Paul


i went to the doc, he said its clotted and too late to drain


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## GettingBy (Aug 19, 2010)

skyhook said:


> Hardhats, they do come in handy sometimes.


At six stitches per inch, he will get. . .um. . .lessee'. . .


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## MSLiechty (Sep 13, 2010)

I've done that paper clip trick better get a bottle of johnny walker close by.. Hurts like a SOB. But once the pressure is released so much better.

ML


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## FramingPro (Jan 31, 2010)

MSLiechty said:


> I've done that paper clip trick better get a bottle of johnny walker close by.. Hurts like a SOB. But once the pressure is released so much better.
> 
> ML


screw that i try but doesn't work pain is going dowen but is discomforting


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## Brutus (May 29, 2007)

FramingPro said:


> wait the clip hurts or if you go to far


it hurts.. but if you go too far, it hurts more. haha.

If it's clotted, not much you can really do, it'll go down in a day or two


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## FramingPro (Jan 31, 2010)

Brutus said:


> it hurts.. but if you go too far, it hurts more. haha.
> 
> If it's clotted, not much you can really do, it'll go down in a day or two


yea **** it for now


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## Brutus (May 29, 2007)

FramingPro said:


> yea **** it for now




remember...

Bones Heal, Chicks Dig Scars, Pain is Temporary, Glory is Forever!


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## Splinter (Apr 5, 2005)

Screw the fingernail... Did you guys miss this one????? 



BamBamm5144 said:


> Saw some guys framing in a roof deck, guy started to go, had the nailer in his hand and nailed right through his hand to stop him.
> 
> Would've been one hell of a fall.


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## Splinter (Apr 5, 2005)

BTW, I use a tiny drill bit through the fingernail instead of the hot poker... Just spin it between your fingers, no power tools necessary. No pain this way either.


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## angus242 (Oct 20, 2007)

MSLiechty said:


> I've done that paper clip trick better get a bottle of johnny walker close by.. Hurts like a SOB. But once the pressure is released so much better.
> 
> ML


Yes but our young compadre is a minor. I don't think Johnny is the answer. :no:


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## Jaws (Dec 20, 2010)

I have been unfortunate in my time to see some bad ones. As a volunteer fireman, I got a call to a construction site, a dump truck operator crushed himself between the truck frame and dump compartment. His whole upper body looked like a bruise. He was killed instantly. 

When I was working on a boat dock crew, my bosses buddy asked if he would come lend a hand setting forms for a retaining wall. Why we were doing that, a big ass pin of some sort fell out of a bull dozer and hit a guy in the head. Cracked his skull. He made it fine after some rehab, just as dumb as he was before. 

I saw one of my dads leads set his skill saw down (the gaurd was shimmed up) and it spun around and nipped his ankle. Not even stitches, just tore up some Epay deck boards and made me think twice about shimming my guard. 

I have broken 3 fingers, 2 by a piece of 2 7/8 drill stem, one by a projector screen ( don't ask). Dislocated a shoulder with a pipe driver ( 140 lbs hydraulic), separated a some ribs falling off a roof. Had a piece of wire get stuck in my eye socket while mowing a jobsite, just scratched the cornea (whew). Total days of work missed: 3.5. Luckily 2 fingers were on my left hand, and the ribs and other finger I was a super by then so I didn't need them. 2 days missed for the shoulder, had to tough it out after because I needed the money. That was pretty dumb, now, looking back. JAW


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## skyhook (Mar 17, 2007)

GettingBy said:


> At six stitches per inch, he will get. . .um. . .lessee'. . .


 :laughing:


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## smalpierre (Jan 19, 2011)

They're hard to count. 38?


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## thegreek (Dec 11, 2008)

Aaron Berk said:


> Chopped it off with what???:confused1:
> 
> Miter saw, sidewinder, RAS, TS, hand saw? Drywall saw???
> 
> I wanna know what it was, shingle hatchet?


Hand saw lol what dedication the first nick must not have been enough for disability


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## thegreek (Dec 11, 2008)

thegreek said:


> Hand saw lol what dedication the first nick must not have been enough for disability


I only use foot saw or skill saw now though a while back got most of my left thumb on kick back I'll add picks off comp in the morn


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## FramingPro (Jan 31, 2010)

skyhook said:


> :laughing:


looks like an L:whistling


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## skyhook (Mar 17, 2007)

smalpierre said:


> They're hard to count. 38?


final count was 46 stictches.


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## aptpupil (Jun 12, 2010)

skyhook said:


> final count was 46 stictches.


how did that happen?


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## VinylHanger (Jul 14, 2011)

In my early days I was working on a site and had just told the guys to cut off a brace that ran partway in front of the doorway to an apartment stairwell. Just as I turned around to leave, one of the guys upstairs called to me and I started to run upstairs. Took it right in the face. Ended up on the ground with everyone but me laughing.

Years later I did the same thing except ran into a tree. I took the fattest tree limb right on my forehead at a full gallop. The doctor said that if I don't die in three days, I'd be fine. :laughing: Ended up that I drove my spine into my lower back. For months I couldn't stand for very long at a time without my lower back going numb. It was still funny. 

Years before, I was framing and the guy above me dropped a 28 oz. framing hammer on the top of my head. We all thought it was a bit funny because just before that, he had dropped his tape measure on my head.


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## J L (Nov 16, 2009)

VinylHanger said:


> In my early days I was working on a site and had just told the guys to cut off a brace that ran partway in front of the doorway to an apartment stairwell. Just as I turned around to leave, one of the guys upstairs called to me and I started to run upstairs. Took it right in the face. Ended up on the ground with everyone but me laughing.
> 
> Years later I did the same thing except ran into a tree. I took the fattest tree limb right on my forehead at a full gallop. The doctor said that if I don't die in three days, I'd be fine. :laughing: Ended up that I drove my spine into my lower back. For months I couldn't stand for very long at a time without my lower back going numb. It was still funny.
> 
> Years before, I was framing and the guy above me dropped a 28 oz. framing hammer on the top of my head. We all thought it was a bit funny because just before that, he had dropped his tape measure on my head.


You should really consider wearing a hardhat or even a motorcycle helmet with full facemask :laughing::laughing:


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## mgb (Oct 31, 2008)

We had an apartment complex we were building. In the middle of the night a stolen car drove off the road, over the embankment. It was embedded into the 2nd story of the building with the driver dead on scene. The passenger/accomplice fled the scene. I think he was later apprehended.

Other then that watched a guy cut into his hand with my scms. (After 2 months working with me) he was really accident prone.

Saw an electrician on top of a 5' wooden stepladder, the rung broke. He fell backwards onto a heater. He got up and went home for the day. Later found out he had broken his back.

Knock on wood, I'm not deserving of mentioning anything that happened to me on a jobsite.


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## Lizzie (Mar 6, 2011)

I did not witness it, but a contractor I do work for told me once of a tilt wall construction he did a long time ago. I'm not familiar with tilt wall construction, but they had two crews working together, one securing the wall up while the other crew worked behind them unfastening braces... Then they broke for lunch, and when they got back somehow they started working backwards. Well the giant concrete wall fell right over, he said it splattered one man, he described it like the wicked witch of the west with his feet sticking out from under the wall and a whole army of men just crying and in hysterics. He went into more gory detail but I will spare you that... The amazing part about it was that there was another guy behind that wall, but he was crouched into a pour strip and survived it


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## Dirtywhiteboy (Oct 15, 2010)

Lizzie said:


> I did not witness it, but a contractor I do work for told me once of a tilt wall construction he did a long time ago. I'm not familiar with tilt wall construction, but they had two crews working together, one securing the wall up while the other crew worked behind them unfastening braces... Then they broke for lunch, and when they got back somehow they started working backwards. Well the giant concrete wall fell right over, he said it splattered one man, he described it like the wicked witch of the west with his feet sticking out from under the wall and a whole army of men just crying and in hysterics. He went into more gory detail but I will spare you that... The amazing part about it was that there was another guy behind that wall, but he was crouched into a pour strip and survived it


OUCH At least he died with his boots on:thumbsup:


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## mudpad (Dec 26, 2008)

Lizzie said:


> Then they broke for lunch, and when they got back somehow they started working backwards.


Wonder what they had to drink for lunch?


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## Dirtywhiteboy (Oct 15, 2010)

mudpad said:


> had to drink for lunch?


or burn


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## Chris Johnson (Apr 19, 2007)

Does frost bite count as a jobsite accident?


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## FramingPro (Jan 31, 2010)

Chris Johnson said:


> Does frost bite count as a jobsite accident?


were you working barefoot. how does it get that cold here


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