VENTURA : Worker Loses Fingers in Water-Tank Accident
Surgeons at the USC University Hospital were unable to reattach a La Habra man’s fingers severed in a work-related accident in Ventura, a University Hospital spokeswoman said.
Armondo Veliz, 63, lost his two middle fingers and portions of his index and little fingers on his right hand Friday while working on a city-owned water tank, a Ventura Fire Department spokesman said.
Veliz was working inside a compressor at the site when a cooling fan switched on and ripped off his fingers, said Chief Bill Rigg of the Ventura Fire Department. Firefighters were able to locate his fingers after Veliz was taken to Ventura County Medical Center.
“We kept them clean and packed them in ice,” Rigg said.
Veliz was transferred to USC University Hospital in Los Angeles, where doctors evaluated the feasibility of reattaching his fingers. The Replantation Team at University Hospital specializes in reattaching severed limbs, a hospital spokeswoman said.
“We decided not to even try,” said Dr. B. Chandrasekhar, a plastic surgeon at the hospital. “His fingers were just too badly crushed.”
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