Construction firm fined after worker killed

A construction firm has been sentenced for serious safety failings after a worker was crushed to death when a 1.6 tonnes frame fell onto him during construction of a steel stair tower.

Daniel Hurley, then aged 31 years, was employed as a ground worker by a company sub-contracted by Morris & Spottiswood to work on a major development of flats and houses in Maryhill, Glasgow.

Glasgow Sheriff Court heard that Mr Hurley had been operating a ‘whacker’ machine to compact hard core next to an area where the structural steelwork for a stair tower was being erected on the site.

But after the steel frame had been lowered into position and the lifting chains released, it then began to tilt and fall towards Mr Hurley, pulling three anchor bolts clear out of the ground, while the fourth was snapped in half.

One of the steel erectors shouted a warning and Mr Hurley began to run, but he was struck by the top beam of the frame across his shoulders and neck forcing him down onto the ground and causing fatal crush injuries.

The incident, on 15 October 2009, was investigated by the HSE and Police Scotland, which found serious safety failings in the way Morris & Spottiswood Ltd as principal contractor had managed the project.

The court was told that the steel fabrication company sub-contracted to design the steelwork and a second company commissioned to erect it, were also both found to be at fault but had since ceased trading.

The investigation found that remaining foundation resin anchor bolts installed by Morris and Spottiswood Ltd were so poorly installed that they could be moved by hand and one was so loose that it was pulled out of the concrete foundation by the investigating inspector. The failure to check the bolts capacity by the sub-contractors combined with the chosen method of erection had contributed to the cause of the fatal collapse.

Morris & Spottiswood had failed to review the risk assessments and method statements submitted by the steelwork sub-contractor for the task and had failed to establish and maintain an exclusion zone around the steelwork while erection was being carried out.

Following the incident, Morris & Spottiswood Ltd contracted a specialist company to replace all of the anchor bolts they had previously installed for this phase of the project. Metal fence panels available on site were also used to create exclusion zones around any remaining steel erection works.

Morris & Spottiswood Ltd, of Helen Street, Glasgow, was fined £200,000 after pleading guilty to breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
 

Scaffolding company and client fined for unsafe practices

A property developer and the firm it contracted to erect scaffolding, have both been fined for safety breaches.

Chart Forte Court (West Ealing) Limited (CFC) was the client for the refurbishment of a building into a hotel. They contracted LS Scaffolders to erect the scaffold on the site before appointing a principal contractor to work on site, and by doing so CFC took the role of principal contractor themselves.

Hammersmith Magistrates’ Court heard how officers from Ealing Council observed very unsafe practices during the erection in November 2013 and asked the workers on site to stop before referring the matter to the HSE.

A Prohibition Notice was then served on LS Scaffolding by HSE.

The fact that work on the scaffold had now been prohibited meant that concerns arose in relation to the stability of the partially completed structure. Ealing Council Building Control were asked by the HSE to inspect the scaffold and duly served a Dangerous Structure Notice on Chart Forte Court (as owner of the site) requiring them to make safe or take down the scaffold by 18^th December 2013. 

However, before the scaffold could be taken down, the two companies involved would have to satisfy the HSE that this could be completed with a safe system of work in place, to be followed by competent scaffolders.

Despite being told by HSE the fact that that no such reassurance had yet been given to the HSE, LS Scaffolding proceeded to take the scaffold down anyway over the weekend of 15 December 2013.

It was being dismantled so unsafely on a busy high street full of shoppers, that members of the public asked the police to intervene, which they did.

When HSE arrived the following day, most of the scaffold was down but another Prohibition Notice was served as workers were still at risk of falls.

Chart Forte Court (West Ealing) Limited of Ashtons Road, Northwood pleaded Guilty to Regulation 22(1) (a) of the Construction (Design & Management) Regulations 2007 and were fined £18,000 with costs of £932 and a victim surcharge of £120.

L S Scaffolding Limited of Vicarage Farm Road, Hounslow pleaded guilty to Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and were fined £18,000 with costs of £964 and a victim surcharge of £120.
 

Firm fined after worker injured in fall

A London firm specialising in bespoke staircases has been sentenced for safety failings after a worker was injured when the personnel cage he was working in was knocked to the ground by an overhead crane.

The 30-year-old man, from Wembley, had been replacing and cleaning light fittings in the workshop of Elite Metalcraft Co Ltd in Walmgate Road, Perivale, London when the incident happened on 12 September 2014.

The personnel cage was knocked over by the overhead travelling crane and the worker was thrown from it, landing on the ground. He suffered severe cuts to his head, arms and right leg and was off work for three weeks. He has since recovered but still has scarring on his arms and leg.

The HSE carried out an investigation into the incident and prosecuted his employer Elite Metalcraft Co Ltd for safety failings.

Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard that the worker was cleaning the light fittings and replacing bulbs from a personnel cage raised on a lift truck, driven by a supervisor.

At the same time steel was being moved from one area of the factory to another using the overhead travelling crane. However, while one of the pieces of steel was being moved the crane came into contact with the personnel cage and knocked it over.

The court was told that the company had failed to properly plan and supervise the work to ensure it was carried out safely. In addition the company had previously been given advice from HSE about the safe use of personnel cages, in particular the need to consider hazards from the overhead cranes.

Elite Metalcraft Co Ltd, of Chamberlayne Road, London was fined £9,000 and ordered to pay costs of £1,563.72 after pleading guilty to breaching Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. 

Roofer in court after workers potentially exposed to asbestos

A roofer has been fined after exposing workers, and the home owners, to potentially deadly asbestos fibres at a domestic property in Suffolk.

On 6 August 2014, David Cummings, t/a Cummings Flat Roofing, was commissioned to repair and re-roof a porch in Martlesham, Suffolk.

During the re-roofing work, his employees disturbed an asbestos insulation board as they were removing the underside of the porch canopy.

The HSE found that Mr Cummings had not arranged for a Refurbishment and Demolition Asbestos Survey for the job to determine if asbestos was present, and if so the type of asbestos present in the porch.  This was despite the homeowner advising Mr Cummings that he believed his porch contained asbestos.

As a result, Mr Cummings’ employees were unaware of the presence of the asbestos insulation board before starting work and potentially exposed the homeowners, and themselves, to asbestos fibres.

In addition, workers did not remove the asbestos insulation board in an appropriate manner, causing a significant amount of breakage to the board, and heavily contaminating the garden with asbestos fibres. As the workers did not control access to the area, asbestos fibres were liable to have been carried into the family’s home.

Mr Cummings, of Kesgrave, Ipswich, was fined £12,000 and ordered to pay £1,200 in costs plus a victim surcharge of £120 after pleading guilty to three breaches of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012.

 

 

 

Construction firm fined after workers injured 

A firm has been sentenced for safety failings after four workers were injured, one of them seriously, when a roof truss in a new extension collapsed during construction.

Four men working on the extension were caught in the collapse at premises in Coventry on 26 June 2014.

One man was trapped by his legs, two suffered minor injuries and the fourth, suffered severe grazing and a fracture to his lower spine which led to many painful months off work.

The principal contractor for the project was DP Designs Ltd who was prosecuted for safety failings following an investigation by the HSE.

The court heard that due to an omission during the planning and procurement process of the project, a critical structural truss had been overlooked. This led to the workers attempting to install the trusses in an unstable manner, but as soon as they realised it was an issue they stopped working in that area.

However, the following day, one of the trusses broke, causing a domino effect as several other trusses collapsed above the area where the men were working.

The investigation found that had the work been properly planned, organised and monitored, the collapse would not have occurred. Also, if appropriate fall prevention measures had been implemented correctly, the outcome would have been less severe.

DP Designs Ltd of Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, was fined a total of £24,000 and ordered to pay costs of £1,106.15 after pleading guilty to two offences, one breach of Regulation 25(1) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 and the other a breach of Regulation 6(3) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.
 

Company in court after worker crushed under forklift truck 

A transport and storage firm has been prosecuted after a father-of-two died when a metal frame being loaded onto a lorry trailer fell on top of him.

Jonathan Newham, 52, of Skegness, died in hospital from head and chest injuries following the incident at George H Kime and Co Ltd in Wrangle, near Boston, Lincolnshire, on 10 July 2012.

The incident was investigated by the HSE and the company was charged with serious safety breaches.

Lincoln Crown Court heard that George H Kime and Co Ltd had transported a consignment of goods from Wiltshire to Wrangle in readiness for the items to be auctioned in Skegness.

Mr Newham and a colleague were using forklift trucks to move the goods, which were not on pallets, from the trailer to a second vehicle, as the trailer was needed elsewhere.

Mr Newham had moved a large metal-wheeled chassis, also known as a ‘dolly’, from the first trailer. His colleague then attempted to load the dolly onto the second trailer.

For unknown reasons, Mr Newham climbed onto the second trailer. As his colleague loaded the dolly onto the trailer with the forklift, it fell off the tines of the forklift truck, trapping and fatally injuring Mr Newham underneath.

HSE’s investigation identified that George H Kime and Co Ltd had failed to ensure the safety of their employees during the movement of the metal dolly. They had failed to plan and supervise the lift and there was no safe system of work in place for the movement of loads not placed on pallets. The forklift truck drivers were trained and competent to move items on pallets.

The court heard the Company should have made sure there was someone in charge who was qualified to plan the lift to ensure it was suspended securely, and to ensure that the item could be safely placed down after being moved. A properly planned and supervised lift would have resulted in the risks being identified and controlled and exclude people from the area. The court heard that whilst the company had some procedures in place, the absence of strong management systems meant that the Company was complacent about the risks and failed to ensure that the procedures were followed.

George H Kime and Co Ltd of Main Road, Wrangle, was fined £125,000 and ordered to pay £61,935 in costs after pleading guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

Firm fined after worker fell from scaffolding 

Roger Smith Installations Ltd of Warwickshire has been prosecuted after a worker fell four metres causing bleeding on the brain, damage to his lungs and ribs.

The incident happened at Stirling Avenue, Cubbington on 3 April 2014, when an employee of the company fell whilst working on a soffit and fascia installation. The platform he was working on fell from the ladder brackets which were supporting it. As a result the worker was badly injured.

On 16 June 2015, Nuneaton Magistrates Court heard that HSE’s investigation found that the equipment the company provided was not adequate. The equipment was being used with no guardrails, no toe boards were provided, and the equipment was not installed in line with the manufacturer’s instructions.   

Roger Smith Installations were found guilty of breaching regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and was fined a total of £10,000 and ordered to pay full costs of £1,229 and a victim surcharge of £120.

 

Recycling company fined after worker loses arm 

A national recycling firm has been fined for safety failings which resulted in an agency worker losing his arm.

Philip Grace, age 43, of Liverpool, lost part of his right arm after the incident at Recresco Ltd’s Manisty Wharf site in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, when it became trapped in a conveyor belt he was maintaining.

Liverpool Crown Court heard how, on 26 January 2014, Mr Grace’s safety glove got caught on a moving conveyor belt on the glass sorting machine on which he was carrying out maintenance.

His arm was pulled into the machine and severed from above the wrist and attempts to reattach his hand were unsuccessful. The extensive surgery Philip Grace has undergone to repair his arm has left the father of one with limited mobility and he lives in constant pain.

An investigation by the HSE found multiple failings by the company, which put their own and agency workers at risk. The company had failed to assess the risks associated with working on moving conveyor belts as well as ensuring the machinery across their site was properly guarded.

The company did not have a safe system of work in place and there was insufficient information, instruction or training relating to the conveyors, which routinely exposed their workers to dangerous situations.

Recresco Ltd, was fined £50,000 with costs £21,625.70 and a £120 victim surcharge after pleading guilty to breaching Regulation 2 and 3 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.
 

HSE Myth Busters:

Issue
A local charity shop refused the enquirers donation of a plastic baby bath because ‘health and safety’ meant that the new purchaser could sue if their baby were injured after slipping in it.

Panel opinion
There are no health and safety rules which would restrict charity shops from accepting items like baby baths for resale. It's also hard to imagine circumstances in which their fear of litigation might manifest itself. They are of course at liberty to set their own policies on what goods they will or will not accept but they can't wash their hands like this and simply point to non-existent "health and safety" rules.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Firm fined after worker broke back in roof fall 

A company that specialises in removing asbestos from buildings has been fined after an employee broke his back when he fell through a fragile roof.

The 58-year-old man, from Yardley, fractured two vertebrae when he fell three metres through the roof of a garage at Warndon, Worcester, on 29 January 2014.

He was off work for eight weeks before returning to his job with TES Environmental Services Ltd.

Worcester Magistrates’ Court heard that the worker was supervising a team of asbestos removal operatives, taking off asbestos cement roof sheets from blocks of garages prior to their demolition.

An investigation by the HSE found the man fell while working from a single crawl board on the fragile roof, with no fall protection or mitigation measures in place.

TES Environmental Services Ltd, of Walmer Way, Chelmsley Wood, Birmingham, was fined £4,000 and ordered to pay £1,425 in costs after pleading guilty to breaching regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. 

Haulage firm fined after driver injured 

A haulage contractor has been sentenced for safety failings after a driver suffered serious injuries when he was catapulted from a powered access platform as he was unloading it from a heavy goods vehicle.

The driver was employed by RC Robinson Haulage Ltd, which had been contracted by a platform hire company to transport the seven ton piece of plant.

Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard that the driver was delivering the plant to the Israeli Embassy in Palace Green, London, when the incident occurred on 7 April 2014.

The driver got into the extendable cage attached to the plant, used its controls to move himself higher and drove it off the low loader. The plant slipped on wet metal ramps and landed on the grass verge narrowly missing a member of the public. The driver was thrown onto the pavement and suffered a number of severe injuries, including a broken pelvis and multiple broken ribs.

The incident was investigated by the HSE, which found that the correct loading and unloading procedure had not been followed. The driver should have used the low loader’s winch to lower the plant off the trailer.

The court heard that the driver had not received adequate training to load and unload powered access platforms from vehicles. While other drivers at the firm received in-house training, this driver was missed.

RC Robinson Haulage Ltd of The Ridgeway Business Park, The Ridgeway, Blunham, Bedfordshire, was fined £8,000 and ordered to pay costs of £782 and a Victim Surcharge of £120 after pleading guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. 

Recycling company sentenced over worker injury 

A company specialising in the recycling of waste plastic was fined after a worker was injured when he fell from an industrial sized waste bin. 

Worthing Magistrates court heard that on 17 June 2014, the worker fell approximately 2.5 metres from the top of a large roll on/off waste bin while manually tipping out non-recyclable waste plastic into the waste bin from a tonne bulk bag. 

At the time of his fall, the injured party was standing inside the waste bin with the top of the container reaching up to shin height. There was nothing to prevent him from falling out of the container while manually unloading the bulk bags into the waste bin. As a result of his fall, he suffered broken collar bone and wrist as well as a blow to the head. 

The man’s employer, Southern Plastic Recycling Limited pleaded guilty at Worthing Magistrates’ Court to breaching of Section 3(1) of Management of Health & Safety at Work Regulations 1999 for which a £500.00 fine was imposed, and a breach of Section 6 (3) of Work at Height Regulations 2005 which attracted a £1000 fine. 

The company of Jury Lane, Sidlesham Common, Chichester, West Sussex was also ordered to pay costs £1043.00. 

Death of young worker leads to court for recycling company 

A recycling company in South Devon has been sentenced for serious safety breaches after a worker was killed after likely being thrown from a six-tonne dumper truck. 

Ben Sewell, 30, from Dartmouth, was found lying on his back on a bank, a few metres behind the overturned dumper, on a sloping dirt track at Dittisham Recycling Centre on 21 September 2012. He was pronounced dead at the scene. 

The HSE prosecuted the firm after an investigation discovered that Mr Sewell had not been properly trained by his employer to use the vehicle. The company had also failed to properly enforce the wearing of seat belts fitted to the dumpers used by Ben and other staff. 

Plymouth Crown Court heard that HSE’s investigation uncovered a catalogue of dangers at the Dittisham Recycling site and served a total of eight Prohibition Notices on the company preventing its use of various plant and machinery until adequate safety measures were taken.

The court was told that on the day of the incident Mr Sewell was using the dumper to take loads of oversized material from one part of the centre to another. The extensive site sits in a steeply sided valley. At one point he stopped at the top of the site to deal with a customer before setting off in his empty dumper down to the bottom of the site along the main dirt track. 

The customer noted the truck was going at speed and that Mr Sewell was not wearing the seat belt. Minutes later, a colleague at the bottom of the site noticed smoke rising from a section of the dirt track above where he was working and he could just see the overturned dumper. He rushed to the scene and found Ben lying on his back at the side of the track some ten metres from the dumper truck. 

Paramedics later confirmed he had been fatally injured. 

HSE found a series of safety failings with other dumper trucks, a tracked excavator and with processing machinery for rock crushing and screening. Tipping operations were also unsafe and some of the roadways about the site were inadequately protected. Inspectors issued two Improvement Notices requiring safety changes to the site’s roadways and tipping safety measures.  

Builder jailed for exposing workers to asbestos 

 A builder has been jailed for exposing workers to asbestos while working at a commercial unit on an industrial estate.

Brian Roberts of 123 Bryniau Road, Llandudno and three men working with him, were exposed to potentially deadly asbestos fibres while working in the unit at Eagle Farm Road, Mochdre Business Park around 11 September 2012.

Llandudno Magistrates’ Court heard how Roberts, who had been employed by the owner of the premises trading at the time as Light in Design, to remove asbestos from the building prior to sale. 

The HSE was alerted to the unlicensed work by a contractor who was licensed to remove asbestos.

HSE’s investigation found that Roberts removed a significant quantity of asbestos insulating board (AIB) from the premises despite not holding a licence to work with such material.

Brian Roberts pleaded guilty to breaching the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012, and was given a custodial sentence of 26 weeks. 

HSE Myth Busters:

A local pub can’t replace fried egg with scrambled as they can’t use a microwave due to health and safety

Issue

On ordering a cooked breakfast in their local pub, the enquirer was told they couldn't replace fried egg with scrambled egg as this would involve using a microwave which can't be done due to Health and Safety.

Panel opinion

This is a cracking excuse! Health & safety at work legislation does not prohibit the use of a microwave oven to make scrambled eggs. The company concerned acknowledges that it does not serve scrambled eggs because it has a centrally-determined menu. Instead of explaining this, "health and safety" has been given as the excuse, irritating the customer and leaving the company with egg on its face.

A lady fainted in a shop and the staff could not give her a glass of water because of health and safety

Issue

Whilst in a shop recently a lady fainted and the enquirer immediately went to assist. The enquirer heard the lady ask the very kind staff in the shop who had given her a comfy chair to sit in, for a drink of water. She was told sorry we can’t give you one - health and safety rules. The enquirer was wondering if this is a true ruling by H&S.

Panel opinion

Refusing the lady who had fainted a drink of water after she came round and was sitting up was a bizarre and ridiculous response. The panel is at a loss to understand why anyone could possibly think they could not do this for "health and safety". There is no such rule and it would have been quick and easy to accommodate the request.

 

 

 

 

Company fined £140,000 after worker crushed under forklift truck

An aluminium fabricator was sentenced after a worker was crushed under a lifting truck which tipped over while lifting extruder dies from storage racks.

Stefan Durina, 33, of Beeston, Nottinghamshire, died following the incident at Boal UK Ltd in Shepshed, near Loughborough, on 23 June 2013.

Leicester Crown Court heard that Mr Durina was trapped underneath an overturned hi bay order picker truck he was using to collect or return aluminium extruder dies, types of metal mould, to the racked storage system.

Mr Durina suffered fatal chest and abdominal crush injuries and died from his injuries in hospital the next day.

An investigation by the HSE concluded that the incident was entirely preventable and stemmed from three material breaches of health and safety law. These were inadequate risk assessment for collecting and replacing dies in storage racks, an inadequate safe system of work for the use of a Narrow Aisle High Level Reach Truck and the company’s organisation of lifting operations in the die storage area.

Boal UK Ltd of Ashby Road East, Shepshed, Loughborough, was fined £140,000 and ordered to pay £32,251.31 in costs after pleading guilty to breaching sections 2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

In his sentencing remarks, the Judge stated that Boal UK Ltd fell far short of the applicable standards and in particular, there was a prolonged and very substantial failure on the part of the company in relation to its monitoring, supervision and enforcement of safe working procedures in the die shop.

After the hearing, HSE inspector Berian Price said:

“Mr Durina’s death was entirely preventable and his life was needlessly lost.

“This incident happened because of management’s failure to ensure a safe system of work was in place that was clearly understood and adhered to by employees and supervised by departmental management. This stemmed in part from the lack of appropriate controls to prevent the lifting truck coming into contact with overhead beams, and from poor control of working practices.

“In addition, there was a failure on behalf of management to record and learn from previous near-miss incidents.

“Lifting operations, which often present severe risks to workers, must be properly planned, controlled and adequately supervised. Serious and fatal incidents have occurred due to workers being crushed by lifting equipment

“It is therefore important to properly enforce, plan and organise lifting operations so they are carried out in safe manner. Each of these elements requires a person or people with sufficient competence to be notified at each step.

“For complex and high-risk operations, the planning and organisation should be extensive and meticulous. Dutyholders should also consider ‘foreseeable misuse’, such as overloading.”

 

Roofer prosecuted for safety failings

An Oxfordshire roofer has been fined for safety failings after he put himself and another worker at risk of a four metre fall while carrying out pointing and tiling on a roof in Woodstock.

Oxford Magistrates’ Court heard that Rory Wootton, who was trading as Advanced Roof Tec, was working with his colleague and partner on the job in Manor Way on 17 March 2014.

The HSE prosecuted Mr Wootton after a complaint from a member of the public prompted an inspection of the work.

HSE found there were no safety measures installed at the property to prevent either worker from falling from the sloping and moss-covered roof. In addition, passers-by to the front of the house were left in danger of being hit by any falling building materials.

Although no-one was injured, the HSE told the court the absence of suitable protection exposed the men to a possible four-metre fall, which could have resulted in death or serious injury.

Rory Wootton, of Barnard Gate, Witney, Oxfordshire, was fined £3,000 with £1,236 in costs after pleading guilty to breaching Section 3(2) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.

After the hearing HSE Inspector Peter Snelgrove said:

“Despite the obvious risk of a serious fall, the approach taken to safety by Rory Wootton was unacceptable.

“The firm the two men operated was on its first of only two jobs it carried out as Mr Wootton decided to end his rather short time in the roofing industry.

Working on a roof can be dangerous. Falls account for more deaths and serious injuries in construction than anything else and roofers account for nearly a quarter of those people killed.

“Roofers must ensure they properly plan work at height, select the right access equipment, and take appropriate steps to minimise the risks to keep themselves and members of the public safe.“
 

Developer in court after workers potentially exposed to asbestos

A construction firm has been fined after exposing workers to potentially deadly asbestos fibres during the conversion of an office block into residential flats in Witham, Essex. 

In July 2012, Marden Homes Ltd was commissioned to convert an office block into residential flats, this involved removing a disused boiler and its pipes from the building’s former Plant Room. 

During the refurbishment work, employees of Marden Homes Ltd disturbed pipe lagging which contained asbestos fibres. 

The HSE prosecuted Marden Homes Ltd at Chelmsford Magistrates Court after finding the company had not arranged for a Refurbishment and Demolition Asbestos Survey to be available to the workers on site. 

The Marden Homes Ltd employees were therefore unable to identify the presence of asbestos before removing the disused boiler and associated pipework and potentially exposed themselves, and other workers, to asbestos fibres. 

One of the workers involved had not received any training to enable him to identify whether the materials he was removing were liable to contain asbestos. 

The company had, in 2013, received advice from HSE regarding the need for a refurbishment and demolition asbestos survey to be carried out prior to work liable to disturb asbestos taking place. The company also received an Improvement Notice requiring them to provide their employees with asbestos awareness training. 

Marden Homes Ltd of 275 Prince Avenue, Westcliff on Sea, Essex was fined £50,000 with costs of £1413 after pleading guilty to three breaches of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012. 

Speaking after the hearing, HSE Inspector David King said: “Exposure to asbestos fibres is a serious and well known health risk, so it is essential that duty-holders take suitable and sufficient measures to prevent the disturbance, spread and exposure to asbestos. 

“Guidance on managing the risks of asbestos is widely and freely available. Asbestos has been subject to regulations since 1931 and relevant to the construction industry since 1969.

“Therefore failing to take action to identify the location and type of asbestos present during planning of the work, not communicating that information to workers/contractors who may disturb the asbestos and then not taking appropriate measures to protect the health of those exposed is absolutely inexcusable.” 

Around 4,500 people die every year as a result of breathing in asbestos fibres, making it the biggest single cause of work-related deaths in the UK. Airborne fibres can become lodged in the lungs and digestive tract, and can lead to lung cancer or other diseases, but symptoms may not appear for several decades. 

 

Construction firm sentenced over ‘life changing’ fall

A Construction company has been sentenced after pleading guilty to safety failings after a 55 year old employee fell through a skylight roof. 

Southwark Crown Court heard that Armenian national, Petros Pogosyan fell through a skylight from a unit roof on a London industrial estate while working for Race Interiors Ltd on 18 January 2013. 

Mr Pogosyan fell four and half meters on to a concrete floor at Unit 1, Roseberry Industrial Estate, London and suffered life changing injuries including a fractured back. He is now partially deaf, has damage to his brain, is paralysed from the waist down and psychologically traumatised. 

During the HSE prosecution case, the court was told he will need personal care for the rest of his life, and will never work again. His wife has given up work to care for him full time. Since the incident the couple have been living on state benefits.

Judge May QC described the accident as highly foreseeable, pointing out there was no protection to prevent a fall from or through the roof. She ruled that the company fell far short of the required standards for managing risks at work as the supervisor was not trained and there was a complete lack of planning with no risk assessment or method statement for the work.

HSE inspector Simon Hester said: “This tragedy should not have happened. Nobody should work on a roof without proper planning.

“It is the employer’s responsibility to ensure that all reasonable precautions are taken to prevent a fall. Mr Pogosyan could have been killed by his fall and now suffers massive and irreversible life-changing injuries.”

Race Interiors Limited appeared at and was fined £60,000 with costs of £7,784 after pleading guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. 

However, in a highly unusual move the fine was converted into a compensation order of £60,000 to be paid directly to Mr Pogosyan. The judge described this as “an exceptional case” as Race Interiors are in dispute with its insurance company and Mr Pogosyan is unlikely, if at all, to receive compensation for his injuries. 

 Firm in court after two workers severely injured in roof fall

A firm carrying out work in Perth has been fined for serious safety failings after two workers fell over four metres when a vehicle spray booth they were constructing collapsed.

John Quinn aged 35 and Joshua Perry aged 21 both of Lichfield were employed by Clive Thompson Installations Ltd when on 22 January 2014 they accessed the partially completed roof of the spray booth in order to fit an extractor fan.

Mr Quinn sustained multiple fractures to both his heels that resulted in a four week stay in hospital and several operations. He had to use a wheelchair for several weeks after his release from hospital.  He now uses crutches, cannot stand for long and continues to have severe pain in both feet. In addition to the physical symptoms Mr Quinn has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Mr Perry suffered multiple fractures to his spine and ankle and extensive soft tissue damage to other parts of his body including nerve damage to his right leg and foot. He has required ongoing surgery and bone grafts and had to wear a full body spinal cast for 16 weeks. He has suffered financially and emotionally since the incident.

Perth Sheriff Court was told that the Company did not provide their employees with a suitable and sufficient risk assessment for the work they were due to carry out. Having failed to visit the site before carrying out the work they were unaware of any site specific hazards and could not therefore provide instruction on where to attach a fall protection harness.

An investigation by the HSE found that although Clive Thompson Installation Ltd were aware that the roofs of the booths were fragile and that fitting extractor fans required employees to cross the roof, no safe system of work was put in place. The company also failed to provide suitable training for their employees for working on fragile roofs.

Clive Thompson Installation Ltd of Tamworth Road, Lichfield, Staffordshire, was fined £10,000 after pleading guilty to breaching Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.

Following the case, HSE inspector Norman Buchanan said:

“This was an entirely avoidable incident. Falling from height is one of the most common reasons for injuries and fatalities at work.

“Clive Thompson Installations Ltd should have been aware of the risks and the precautions that needed to be taken before starting the work. The dangers of fragile roofs are well known and site specific plans for where to secure safety harnesses should have been put in place

“By failing to properly plan the work and provide sufficient training     , two workers have suffered serious injuries which have had a profound effect on their lives”

Falling through fragile roofs and rooflights accounts for almost a fifth of all the fatal incidents which result from falls from height. On average, seven people are killed every year after falling through a fragile roof or rooflight. Many others suffer permanent disabling injuries.