TOLEDO — A Tama County man who lost two of his fingers as a result of injuries suffered while working at Central Iowa Firewood back in 2021 has sued the company for negligence and alleged that Owner Luke Squiers denied him EMS transportation to a hospital, according to documents filed in Tama County District Court.

In his lawsuit dated July 26, plaintiff Clayton Killian, who is represented by Gourley, Rehkemper and Lindholm PLC and Parrish-Sams Luthen Law PC, alleges that as a 17-year-old at the time, he was not authorized to work in any logging operation and did not have training using a log splitter, the device that ultimately caused the injuries. It goes on to charge that Squiers personally intervened to deny Killian an ambulance ride and instead drove him over 70 miles to the Blank Children’s Hospital in Des Moines.

“Defendant Luke Squiers’ actions resulted in failure to properly care, transport, and preserve Clayton’s severed fingers,” the suit reads. “Defendants’ actions in denying Clayton proper medical emergency care was a cause of the loss of his fingers and the loss of opportunity to save his fingers.”

Killian was life-flighted from Blank to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, and the suit alleges that this delay “was a cause of the loss of his fingers and the loss of opportunity to save his fingers.” It notes that the incident was reported to the Iowa Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and Central Iowa Firewood was cited for a total of four violations. The Iowa Division of Labor Services – Child Labor Investigations Unit also cited the company for 10 additional violations.

The suit accuses Squiers and his company of negligence and gross negligence and requests punitive damages, attorney fees and further relief as allowed by law.

In a response dated Sept. 29, Squiers and his attorney Mark J. Parmenter of Lederer, Weston and Craig PLC,, deny that Central Iowa Firewood is a logging operation and that Killian was ever instructed or directed to use the log splitter in question. Instead, they allege that on the day of the incident, July 30, 2021, the plaintiff was using the machine without the “knowledge or permission” of the defendant, and Squiers only took Killian to Des Moines because that was what his mother had requested.

Both parties have requested a jury trial, and a scheduling conference is set for Nov. 30 at 9:30 a.m.