Dumb Accident

[Dave Anderson NH]

Normally we think of shop accidents and injuries as something that happens to the power tool folks. I'm not talking about the occasional nick, scrape, or minor cut which happens to most of us no matter what type of woodworking we do. Well, yesterday in an instant of inattention and lack of forethought I managed to do myself well enuf to send me on a trip to the local hospital emergency room.

I had been paring the slots of a small column on a stand I was making to hold my screw arm plow plane. In a moment of extreme stupidity I decided to make a plunge cut to deepen the slot with a chisel. This itself is a bad idea since I would be going in the grain direction and risked splitting part of the workpiece off of the column. This indeed did happen (though the piece was glued back on last nite). I grasped the column with my hand below where I was making the cut (Major No No) and proceeded to force the chisel downward. It split off part of the workpiece, and with the continueing force slit a deep cut above the first joint of my forefinger, continued on into AND through the first digit of my middle finger, and ended up embedded in my ring finger. Yes, my middle finger has both an entrance and an exit wound 3/8" wide just like the chisel. As soon as the wood started to split I knew I had done something stupid, but of course by then it was too late.

I ran upstairs from the bench room while applying direct pressure on the right hand and started to run cold water over the hand while checking out the mess and calling my wife. We then drove to the emergency room while I kept the hand wrapped in a wet towel and kept the pressure on the fist. The hospital did a nice job.

The net result of this exercise in carelessness, stupidity, and lack of forethought is three heavily bandaged fingers, two stitches on my punctured ring finger, two stitches each on the entry and exit holes of my skewered middle finger, and a nice deep slit on my fore finger. While the chisel glanced off the bone of the middle finger, no nerves or tendons were cut in any of the fingers. All things considered, I was lucky and this will only impact my woodworking for a couple or three weeks.

The worst thing about this whole episode is knowing I violated the single most important rule when using any cutting tool....Never place the any body part downhill from the direction the tool will travel. I was in a hurry to finish, I was sloppy and careless, and I had to pay the price. Hopefully this account will encourage others to examine their work habits and slow down a bit.

[Ted Shrader]

Dave -

Glad you were not hurt any more severely. Soft tissue damage will heal.

Reminds me of my home vasectomy (almost) kit. Was cutting a piece on a workbench, drawing the knife toward me while seated on a stool. Knife slipped and plunged to the hilt (only about 1 3/8" long) exceptionally near my nether regions. My mother in law (nurse) was first on the scene. She was at our house visiting our 1 week old daughter. Course the running joke is, I didn't want to have any more kids.

Get well soon!

Ted

[Jim Becker]

Dave, I hope you heal quickly! Accidents are accidents, no matter what the tool or operation...thanks for the reminder. I recall when I actually sharpened my chisels "correctly" a few years ago and lost track of the fact that they were indeed, sharp. Carelessness made for some "interesting stains" on the workbench that didn't originate in the finishing cabinet.

'Wishing you a great new year that will be accident-free!

[Ron McNeil]

Dave, I'm sorry to hear of your accident. I'm glad to hear it was not as serious as it could have been. Please heal quickly and get back to the shop as soon as you can.

[Tom Stovell]

Dave,
Sorry to hear of the accident, but glad it wasn't worse.

That split second before the damage is done always leaves a bad feeling, knowing what you should have done to prevent the accident in the first place. Hope you heal quickly and have a safe New Year.

Tom

[Keith Outten]

Dave,

Your accident made the hair on my neck stand up, I remember more than a few times I've experienced that feeling before and after a serious cut. Sure hope that you heal quick and we're all glad you weren't hurt any worse or had any permanent damage.

My daughter works at Riverside hospital and they had two people last week come in with fingers missing. Lots of people getting new tools and an increase in accidents always happens this time of year.

[Carl Eyman]

Much sympathy, Dave. Glad it wasn't such as to impact your Williamsburg trip. I'll see you there if you promise not to tell me any more about it.

[Martin Shupe]

Dave, sorry to hear about your mishap. I hope you heal quickly.

Although I am new to chisels, Marc Adams told me that the worst accident at his school was with a hand chisel. Therefore, he has a rule that you must always keep two hands on the chisel when paring. That way, if you slip, you (hopefully) won't stick the chisel in yourself.

[Matt Woodworth]

Sorry to hear about your accident. I'm glad it wasn't worse.

[John Allman]

Gee Dave, I never thought you would be the 'poster boy' for what not to do!

Thanks for the reminder to be careful and think about what we are doing. It is usually when we are in a hurry and under pressure that these things happen.

Heal quickly. (You didn't get red stain on the work did you?)

John

[Dennis Peacock]

Dave,

Very sorry to here about your accident. I hope and pray that you heal very quickly and completely. Those kinds of injuries really are NOT a lot of fun to deal with and being partially "handicapped" for a bit will be a real bummer. Get well soon and speedy recover to you.

[Gary Hupp]

I did the same thing with a candlestick turning. It seemed like slow motion as the 1/2" chisel entered the web of my hand between the thumb and forefinger. Bled like the dickens, but I didn't see the need for stitches. Now I have a permanent 1/2" ruler on my left hand.

[Lloyd Robins]

I am sorry to hear about your accident. When we get in a rush, bad things happen all too often. I know because I have done it enough. Heal quickly!

[Ace Karner]

Sorry to hear about your accident, but would like to thank you for telling us about it, I know it makes me think, maybe you have at least spared some of us the misery you are experiencing.

I know I will think things thru a little more carefully now.

Heal soon, and get back in that shop

Ace

[Don Henthorn Smithville, TX]

Sorry to hear the painful news, Dave. The physcal pain is bad enough, but knowng that it shouldn't have happened is even worse. I have had my share of dumb accidents and can really empathize with you.

[Halsey MCCombs]

Sorry to hear of your accident Dave, wishing you a fast recovery. Halsey

[Marc Hills]

Sorry to hear about your accident, Dave. I'm glad it wasn't worse though. Thanks for sharing the experience in all it's gory detail. We all can't hear enough reminders about the importance of working safely.

How about we all make a resolution for 2004 to work safe, smart and with the best tools we all have (our brains and common sense).

[Terry Quiram]

Daaaaaave!!!! I once heard that 90% of all accidents happen within 25 miles of your home. If I were you I would move.

I did the same thing 4 days ago paring a knob off the bottom of a bowl, BUT I only poked deep enough to draw blood. I too realized it was a dopey thing to do a scant second before. And I even have a carvers mesh gloove. Heal fast.

Terry

[Alan Turner]

Dave,
My thoughts are with you. I have done the same thing, with the same thoughts and realizations. May you heal quickly.
Alan

[Glenn Clabo]

Dave,
I have little scares all over my hands from those moments when muscle twitches overcame the brains screams. I hope you recover quickly...and thanks for the reminder to slow down. I'm going to print and put this up in the shop to remind myself.

[Dave Anderson NH]

I appreciate all the wishes for a quick recovery. So far only Roger Myers has actually seen the embarrassment in person. Things seem to be healing well so far and I've somehow managed to avoid any pain without resorting to medication. The really wierd thing is how I managed to reach 55 yo without ever having had any stiches until this incident. I've cut myself innumerable times, gouged myself, punctured myself, received schrapnel and gunshot wounds, but never a stitch until now. It really brings home how the workshop can be a dangerous place. Now you folks play safe out there.

l

[Bill Grumbine]

Dave, sorry to hear of your accident. I think hand tools are probably more dangerous than power tools in many ways. My worst injury came from a utility knife. Heal up soon!

Bill

[Tyler Howell]

Dave
As an EMT and EMS Instructor I did many shifts in, or deliveries to all of the trauma centers in the metro area. I’ll never forget the Friday night from fell when we saw 45 patients in our ER. Of that number 40 were alcohol related, 15 of them were hand injuries
Ladies and gentlemen you are artists. The source of your pleasure, expression of your passion, basis of your income and instrument of your mind’s eye are your hands. I know many of you take better care of your tools than you do your hands (i.e. your safety). If you think for a minute what an intricate creation and marvelous tool the hand is. Always on duty always ready to serve, you can’t help but want to protect yourself better. ;)

Keep reminding us of how we occasionally screw up and that many things we love to do could abruptly change with a lapse of attention.

We make lots of jokes and it’s a great trademark, but I only want to see that wineglass in photos of the finished project.

Don’t make me come over there. :mad:

Tyler

[Marc Hills]

Well said, Tyler!

Hear, hear.

[Clay Craig]

Sorry to hear it - and if you made it all the way through a finger with no nerve or vessel damaged, you can count yourself as learning a very cheap lesson indeed.

I suffered the ignominy of being the only person hauled to the Fort Bragg ER during 3 weeks of classes at CofR last summer - and that was also a chisel cut (mine simply slipped from my hand after a cut, and sliced as it fell straight into the other hand) ... I managed to hold it tight enough while waiting in the ER that they just CA'd it rather than stitching (after the ER doc was assured that it had in fact 'bled freely'!)

As a side note - you got wounded by actual shrapnel - but no prior stitches!?

Clay

[Dave Anderson NH]

The wounds from the 2 times I got hit with schrapnel were mostly small and relatively close to the surface. Only one piece in one thigh was very large and the Docs wicked it and then bandaged it. As a kid my Doc believed in butterfly closures and used those on most of my wounds including a cultivator a neighbor kid put through my left hand. I sure can't complain about my luck.

[Kirk (KC) Constable]

I think I've looked at this forum one time before today...and then when I visit again I see this post. Yikes. It certainly made my tummy tumble. :(

KC