Finger amputation

[Kfbeal]

I thought I'd share this incident I went through a few years ago. I had a housing go bad on my lawnmower so I planned to replace it. I removed the deck from the lawnmower and replacing the housing. On my mower, I had a rope from the hydrostatic control down to the deck flapper so I could easily pick it up should it ball up. I took that rope off of the deck side when I removed the deck.

I put the deck back on and then backed out of the garage. About that time I noticed the rope hanging and went to grab it while I was backing up. As I grabbed it, the rope went under the right rear tire. The rope ended up sucking my middle right finger onto the edge of the fender literally wrapped it around the sharp edge. Before I knew it, the tire put it in a bind and continued to pull tighter. I pulled my hand to move lever into neutral and realized what had happened. It took my finger off just above the last knuckle. I was by myself at the time, wife was walking at the track and I couldn't reach her so I called my mother to call her and let her know I cut my finger off and was driving to the ER. I couldn't find the tip, SIL found it later. They said it wasn't enough to re-attach, so now I'm stumpy. Never thought about OnStar, but we're 10 miles out so it was faster to drive in. Went to ER Thursday night, saw bone & joint doctor on Friday and he scheduled surgery for Monday.

It was a lesson learned that not everyone who loses limbs to lawnmowers were lost due to the blades. I've dislocated fingers, etc but this was the worst pain I had felt in my life. I didn't sleep for 2 nights and ended gloing to ER for pain medicine, Tylenol 4 or whatever the strong stuff was. I couldn't bare the pain. Call me a sissy. The doctor said it is probably the worst type of pain due to all of the nerve endings in your fingers. It took me a while to realize that until I thought about how sensitive your finger tips are.

If the pic is too graphic, please remove or let me know to remove.

 

[BigD23]

Sad story and thanks for sharing...Safety is So important in our daily lives...As told, all it takes is a second.

Don

 

[DWCox]

Wow. Are those stitches in the first photo? They appear to be numerous and in various directions.

I don't know if you lost enough for this phenomenon, but some people continue to feel the presence, sensation, and sometimes even pain in limbs or appendages which are no longer present (viz., phantom pain).

 

[Philscbx]

Highly unfortunate, but exactly as my Father had done to the same digit on a combine belt sheave in the fifties.

He also became famous with that digit all our lives.

If it wasn't comic, it was painful when he tapped your breast bone like a jackhammer. Basically a cordless nailgun.

Friends that met this weapon 30/40 years ago will in the middle of conversation recall the pain.

 

[Ductape]

Welcome to the club !

 

[Mike_Kanzer]

Wow - kind of a freak accident. Not really sure you did anything "unsafe". Glad it looks like it healed up nicely. Does it bother you any now?

 

[JB4310]

Highly unfortunate, but exactly as my Father had done to the same digit on a combine belt sheave in the fifties.

He also became famous with that digit all our lives.

If it wasn't comic, it was painful when he tapped your breast bone like a jackhammer. Basically a cordless nailgun.

Friends that met this weapon 30/40 years ago will in the middle of conversation recall the pain.

Yup, LOL, I worked for an old timer that would get you right on the top of the head with his, I forget which digit but wont forget the feeling on my skull, nor will any of his 6 boys, who I'm sure got it alot more than I did.

Sorry to hear about the OP's incident, My brother lost 2 fingers to a Makita circular saw, they reattached them but their not much use.

 

[Kfbeal]

Yes, they are stitches. The doctor made a Y incision in order to close it back up. The tip now looks like he has a circle on it if looking at the palm. He also pulled all the nerve ending to the tip so I would have feeling. He did a real great job as far as that goes. I still have feelings, but it hurts like he!! when I bump it at times. I was using a ratchet one day to tighten a bolt, slipped and this finger slammed into metal. It hurt about 20 times worse than the other fingers.

I took several weeks of physical therapy and have full motion and almost full closure. I tend to drop the small nuts and washers that I normally wouldn't have just because I don't squeeze tight enough now although my fist does close all the way.

I feel like an idiot because I normally start the story off with I cut my finger off working on a lawnmower and everyone expects it to be the blades.

The strange part is that it barely bled. It didn't volcano out like on the movies, which I'm thankful for being by myself. I did forget to mention I about passed out twice though. I was freaking out a little when I saw the outcome right after the accident.

 

[Ductape]

I did forget to mention I about passed out twice though. I was freaking out a little when I saw the outcome right after the accident.

Awwww, c'mon now! You keep talking like that and i'm gonna think you're a nancy-boy!

 

[ray66v]

I too lost the end of my finger, (technically you lost a "digit", you still have your finger), at work, about 30 years ago.

It took many years for the nerves to grow back to the tip. Prior to that, it felt very strange. If I ran my thumb down it, the nerves just ended, even though the finger continued on for another 1/2".

The finger was very sensitive for at least 10 years, just bumping it in to something, caused quite a painful jolt.

It feels like the others now, with the exception that tightness makes it not want to straighten all the way out, without a lot of effort.

It serves as a constant reminder to be more careful.

 

[Kfbeal]

No worries. When our daughter was born 5 years ago the anesthesiologist was giving my wife her Epidural (sp) and I got a little weak. I went down to one knee and the Doc asked what I was doing. Being the jokester that I normally am, I said "shortening the fall".

 

[LBrown59]

I have a friend that lost the tips of his ring finger and middle finger at the first joints about 3 or 4 years ago.
He was trying to hook a manure spreader to a JD.
The tongue slipped off the tractor hitch.
Without thinking he grabbed the tongue in a futile effort to keep the end of the tongue from falling clear down on the ground.
The tongue came down on top of a concrete block with his fingers between the bottom of the tongue and the block .
Took the ends of those 2 fingers off instantly.
He's is a strong muscular guy but he didn't have a chance to prevent that heavy tongue from falling.
His best move would have been to jump or move out of the way and just let it go .
Had he done that he would still have both fingers today.

 

[Charlton John]

Thanks for sharing. I actually had the same exact injury happen to me also right above the upper knuckle on my pointer finger except mine happened by getting it closed in a 4" thick old wooden front door on a house. Why was my finger in the crack of the opening I have no idea. After it immiedetly happeneed I pulled my hand out and looked at it quickly and seen nothing but a ton of blood squirting out I quickly went to the sink and when washing it off is when I noticed I was missing 1/4 of my finger. I then of course panicked. Luckily I had friends/neighbors w/ me, they located the finger tip on the steps and it was immideitly put in a sandwhich bag w/ ice. I rushed to the ER (beleive it or not and had to sit there for an hr.) before I was seen.

During the surgery in the attempt of them trying to re-attach I was awake but in imense pain I ended up kicking the nurse in the face (busted her wide open) and they ended up having to put my in a straight jacket for the rest of the process. They were not sure if the surgery was going to be succsessful or if I was going to lose my finger due to infection. I luckily was able to keep my entire finger, but to this day I have no feeling in the upper part of my finger and the nail does not grow, luckily for me I dont bite my nails

 

[Wayne County Hose]

Sorry to hear about your injury but it could have been much worse. If the pain meds aren't doing it for you, keep requesting something stronger. I can't believe they gave you Tylenol 4 at the ER. They should have given Vicodin or even Percocet.

I hate to tell you, but mine hurt way worse after the surgery than before. Yours may be different, mine really didn't hurt when I initially injured it.

BTW, they told me that at best, the nerves regenerate at 1mm per month, if they ever regenerate.

Oops, just re-read, it was a few years ago. Nevermind.

 

[Kfbeal]

If I said I went back to the ER, I said that wrong; it was actually the clinic. He gave me the shot because what had happend is I was taking 1-1/2 of the Vicodin or similar and it got hung up and scratched my throat preventing me from swallowing any pills. So liquid form was the only way from then on out. Ever had one of those pills dissolve in your throat? Man that thing almost got me sick.

To me, this pain was horrific. My wife woke up in the middle of the night and I was sitting on the edge of the bed with my hands on my head just pressing to try and relieve the pain.

It was 2 days after the incident on the Friday night that it really began to bother me. After the surgery the pain meds were working due to being liquid.

The doc actually pulled all the nerves to the end so that gave me feeling instantly. And boy did I have feeling. It feels real tight, I have full motion and use but it's just not the same.

 

[Kfbeal]

A few years ago, a guy I know was working on a dump truck with the dump bed up. He had it blocked but somehow the blocks gave way. The bed slammed down on his flat hand and bounced up. As it bounced up he was able to remove his hand luckily. No major damage to his hand unbelievably. I was pretty shocked but glad for his sake as that could have been very bad.

 

[Kernopelli]

Lots of stubbies on the site . I was a meat cutter for years and have been to the ER ( or even stitched at home after work) several times.
We used to get 60 lbs cases of bull meat to mix with lean trimmings to make ground beef. They came in frozen and you'd cut them into strips on the band saw so you could feed it thru the grinder. I was talking to my buddy one day while I was zipping strips off...zing, zing, zing and my right hand slipped off the side of a frozen block and straight towards the blade. I jumped back and threw my hands up in the air and started laughing and yelled "Hey Wayne, did you see that? I almost cut my freaking hand off!!
Well, Ol Wayne was standing there looking at me like I had lost my mind with his mouth wide open. I knew something was wrong and I looked up at my right hand...now with the end of my thumb hanging by skin. Didn't even feel it. A fast/sharp cutting instrument is almost painless, even thru bone. In fact, it didn't start hurting for probably 10-15 minutes. Middle finger on left hand is fused from being reattached at middle joint. A sharp boning knife will separate a joint with ease.
I've worked in corrections for 11 years now and I will tell you, supervising 100 inmates by yourself is easier and safer than what I used to do.

 

[F.L. Jennings]

If you work with tools & machinery sooner or later there will be a catastrophe. Lost to the first joint of these two fingers in a double tripping press brake when I was 17 working after school. (all boys technical high school) Not long after a friend lost everything on one hand except his thumb in a similar machine at a different company. As a former tool and die maker/machinist I've seen a lot of injuries. I didn't pass out but my stomach did a couple of slow rolls. The company was indifferent to employee safety and many men there had lost several fingers. Companies should lookout for those that labor in their fields. Workmen's comp keeps you from suing them.

Left the machine shop and went into engineering, but still work in my shop welding, machining etc. Always getting burned, cut, mashed etc. it just goes with the territory. Worth it all though. I've sawmilled, finished concrete and every other thing and have received few injuries for the activity I've been involved in.

Yes, I still miss those fingers but I'm convinced the loss saved my life. I was 4F'd because of them when called up for the Vietnam draft.

 

[emmy71]

Lots of stubbies on the site . I was a meat cutter for years and have been to the ER ( or even stitched at home after work) several times.
We used to get 60 lbs cases of bull meat to mix with lean trimmings to make ground beef. They came in frozen and you'd cut them into strips on the band saw so you could feed it thru the grinder. I was talking to my buddy one day while I was zipping strips off...zing, zing, zing and my right hand slipped off the side of a frozen block and straight towards the blade. I jumped back and threw my hands up in the air and started laughing and yelled "Hey Wayne, did you see that? I almost cut my freaking hand off!!
Well, Ol Wayne was standing there looking at me like I had lost my mind with his mouth wide open. I knew something was wrong and I looked up at my right hand...now with the end of my thumb hanging by skin. Didn't even feel it. A fast/sharp cutting instrument is almost painless, even thru bone. In fact, it didn't start hurting for probably 10-15 minutes. Middle finger on left hand is fused from being reattached at middle joint. A sharp boning knife will separate a joint with ease.
I've worked in corrections for 11 years now and I will tell you, supervising 100 inmates by yourself is easier and safer than what I used to do.

We called those cases shank meat. I cut meat for 15 years and never cut myself on the bandsaw. With a knife is a different story. One good thing about cutting yourself while cutting meat is your hands are usually really cold and they don't bleed much.

Terry

 

[keeney]

Working at Toro I learned that many lawnmower accidents and injuries do not directly involve body parts coming into contact with the blade.

Other safety concerns from lawn mowers:

Thrown objects from the blade.

Catastrophic failure when striking a solid object. One safety test is the 1" steel stake test. A spring loaded 1" dia steel spike pops up into the blade from a bushing embedded in a concrete floor. No parts of the blade or engine can fly off.

Fire from leaking gasoline.

Explosion from gasoline fumes ignited by appliances.

Fire from shorts in battery.

Poison from gasoline, oil, or coolant (kids & pets).

Burns from muffler.

Fire from ignition of dry grass clippings collecting on engine / muffler.

CO poisoning from running indoors.

Roll-over of riding (tractor) or larger walk-behind mowers.

Driving over children with riding mower (especially when backing). A 600 lb riding mower can still cause significant injury even if the blade is not involved.

Pinch points, sharp edges, projecting screw ends that can snag flesh, etc.

Pinching in belts, gears.

Entanglement of clothing, twine, wire, rope, etc in blade, belts, or drive wheels.

Lifting and loading accidents when preparing for transport in a truck or trailer.

Head striking fixed objects while riding / mowing (tree limbs, etc).

Noise / hearing loss.