A Reuters investigation revealed that over 600 injuries in SpaceX since 2014 have occurred but have not been reported publicly until now.
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Investigation Cites CEO Elon Musk's Aggressive Deadlines
"Musk's rocket company has disregarded worker-safety regulations and standard practices at its inherently dangerous rocket and satellite facilities nationwide, with workers paying a heavy price," the investigation reported. Moreover, many of the incidents were classified as serious or disabling.
The record showed that more than 100 workers had cuts or lacerations, 29 suffered from broken bones or dislocation, and 17 whose hands or fingers were crushed. There were also reports of serious head injuries, eye injuries, amputations, and more.
Former and current employees at SpaceX unveiled that incidents happened because some workers were either under-trained or overtired. Many staff members have been skipping basic safety procedures due to Musk's aggressive deadlines for space missions, the prominent one is getting humans to Mars "as fast as possible."
"The company justifies casting aside anything that could stand in the way of accomplishing that goal, including worker safety," former SpaceX senior avionics engineer Tom Moline stated. Some employees testified that Musk would sometimes play with a novelty flamethrower and discouraged workers from wearing safety yellow since he dislikes bright colors.
SpaceX Allegedly Ignores Safety Warning
There were also reports of SpaceX ignoring the dangers of rushing its projects, especially in engine developments. In a severe incident in 2022, an employee fractured his skull and was put in a coma after a part flew off during the pressure testing of the Raptor V2 rocket engine. According to Reuters' sources, senior managers at the site were warned about the flaw, but it was not fixed before the testing.
The wife of the affected employee told Reuters that Space X ignored the family's attempt to get an explanation as to why his husband was not protected. On the other hand, workers from other sites were reportedly sleeping overnight at the facility sometimes to work more than 80 hours a week just so they could meet the CEO's deadlines.
SpaceX had also started building rockets in tents near an undeveloped Gulf of Mexico beach to speed up work and cut costs. It was reported that workers there weld rocket parts up to 12 hours a day, six days a week, and in a temperature of over 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
The company did not respond to questions from Reuters.
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