Tortilla firm ordered to pay $52k reparations after worker's arm crushed and burned

Daniel Figueroa's arm was crushed in a tortilla oven. Picture / Peter Mcintosh/ODT

A tortilla company has been ordered to pay reparations of more than $52,000 after an oven crushed and burned a Queenstown worker's hand and arm in November 2016.

WorkSafe said Miller Foods Limited, trading as Remarkable Tortillas, was sentenced in the Queenstown District Court today following an incident that left a worker's arm trapped in an oven that was aflame.

The Otago Daily Times reported in 2016 that Daniel Figueroa's arm was mangled to the bone after it became caught in a conveyor belt at Remarkable Tortillas. He subsequently underwent operations in Dunedin Hospital to treat a broken wrist and arm, burns and a "huge'' hole in his elbow.

"It was really bad. I was screaming for help but no one heard and I couldn't see the button to turn it off,'' Figueroa said after the incident.

After 20 seconds of terror, Figueroa, 19, "somehow" managed to turn the machine off.

The crushing had stopped, but it was 15 minutes before two "shocked and scared'' workmates found him, he said.

WorkSafe said the tortilla oven had multiple sources of risk.

"This was a piece of machinery loaded with risks." said WorkSafe deputy general manager, investigations and specialist services Simon Humphries.

"The gas burners, the moving conveyor belt and the inadequate machine guarding all contributed to an incident that was entirely avoidable. Tortillas getting jammed was a known issue but there was no safe system in place for managing the problem".

The worker was cooking tortillas in a commercial tortilla press and oven when his glove became caught and his right hand and arm were drawn into the oven. Other workers freed the man's arm, but were not immediately aware of what to do in an emergency, WorkSafe said.

WorkSafe said its investigation found that Remarkable Tortillas had inadequate health and safety systems, failed to ensure a risk assessment of the machinery was carried out, provide suitable guarding, and to ensure that workers were adequately trained and were aware of an appropriate emergency system.

Following prohibition and improvement notices from WorkSafe, Remarkable Tortillas had installed an interlocking guard.

No fine was imposed and the reasons for this were suppressed by the court. The company was ordered to pay reparations of $52,282.97

- Additional reporting Otago Daily Times