OSHA Severe Injury Reporting: The 8-Hour Fatality Rule

Report a work-related fatality to OSHA within 8 hours of learning of it, by phone to the Area Office or 1-800-321-6742, or online. It is reportable only if the death occurs within 30 days of the incident, and the case is also recorded on the 300 Log.

• 8 hours: report a work-related fatality, counted from when you learn of it (deaths within 30 days of the incident).
• 24 hours: report an in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye (events within 24 hours of the incident).
• 7 calendar days: record the case on the 300 Log and complete the 301.
• Year end: the case is part of the reviewed log and the certified 300A.

Report to OSHA within 8 hours after a work-related fatality, and within 24 hours after a work-related in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye (29 CFR 1904.39). Report by phone or in person to the nearest Area Office, by calling 1-800-321-6742, or online at osha.gov/report; voicemail, fax, and email do not count. A fatality is reportable only if the death occurs within 30 days of the incident, and a hospitalization, amputation, or eye loss only if it occurs within 24 hours. The clock starts when you or your agent learn of the event and that it was work-related. Reporting does not replace recording: the case still goes on the 300 Log.

Have these ready before you call 1-800-321-6742 or file online (1904.39(b)(2)):

1. The establishment name
2. The location of the work-related incident
3. The time of the incident
4. The type of event: fatality, in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye
5. The number of employees affected
6. Their names
7. Your contact person and phone number
8. A brief description of the incident

The fatality call happens under pressure and details are rarely complete at first. Separate immediate reporting from later OSHA 300 recordkeeping.

1. Escalate the facts immediately.
2. Confirm the work relationship as far as you can.
3. Report through an approved channel.
4. Preserve evidence and record the case.

Report as soon as you realize the deadline passed, and give OSHA the actual times: when the incident happened, when you learned of it, and when you reported. Late reporting can be cited, with a maximum of $16,550 per serious or other-than-serious violation in 2026. Then make sure the case is on the 300 Log as well.

Teams sometimes wait for a full investigation before reporting. Report with the facts you have; the investigation continues after the call.

Reporting decisions are made under pressure with partial facts, and a call that waits on an investigation is usually a late call. The fix is a written escalation path: who decides, who calls, which number, and what to have in hand, so the report never waits for the investigation.

At the director level the question is less about one case and more about whether every site applies the rule the same way, with evidence you could show an inspector.

• A death days after the incident can still trigger reporting if it falls within OSHA timing rules.
• A heart attack at work that leads to death or hospitalization must be reported; the Area Office decides whether to investigate.

An employee collapses and dies at 3 p.m. after being struck by a reversing truck. The site manager calls 1-800-321-6742 at 4:30 p.m. with the required details, without waiting for the investigation, and records the case on the 300 Log within 7 days.

300log records on each case's 301 whether the employee was treated in an emergency room or hospitalized overnight as an in-patient, and any date of death, so the log entry sits next to the facts behind a report. The report itself goes to OSHA by phone or at osha.gov/report.

For a quick answer without an account, use the free recordability checker.

• OSHA 24-Hour Reporting for In-Patient Hospitalizations
• OSHA Amputation Reporting and Recordkeeping: What Safety Teams Should Do First
• Loss of an Eye Reporting to OSHA: The 24-Hour Rule Explained
• Automated OSHA 300 Reporting Workflow: From Incident Intake to ITA CSV