HSE prosecution round up:
Rochdale roofing contractor fined over fall from height risk
A roofing contractor has been
fined after putting the lives of two employees at risk whilst working at height
without protection against falls.
The employees of MW Roofing
(NW) Ltd were removing a chimney on a two storey house, at the site on Bertha
Road, Rochdale, when they were seen accessing the roof via a cat ladder. Waste material was being removed by buckets carried down the ladder. The
company had not put in place any safety measures to prevent people falling off
the roof.
Manchester City Magistrates
heard that despite having previously received warnings from the Health and
Safety Executive about their unsafe working at height practice the company
still continued to work in a dangerous manner.
MW Roofing (NW) Ltd of Bury
Road, Bamford, Rochdale pleaded guilty to two breaches, Regulation 4(1) of the
Work at Height Regulations 2005 and Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at
Work etc. Act 1974 and was fined £6,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,440.60.
Speaking after the hearing HSE
Inspector David Argument said:
“You cannot ignore the dangers of working at
height, it remains the main cause of death and serious injury in the workplace,
particularly in the construction industry. Simple measures, such as providing
guard rails can prevent death and serious injury”.
Waste company fined after worker run over
A Welsh landfill company have
been fined after a worker had to have both legs amputated after being run over.
Mold Crown Court heard how the
worker was walking across the yard at the Bryn Posteg Landfill site in
Llanidloes, when they were hit by a large shovel loader on 6 November 2015. The
worker suffered severe injuries and needed both legs amputated at the mid-thigh
and was hospitalised for six-months.
An investigation by the Health
and Safety Executive (HSE) found the company did not have and controls in place
to protect workers from the high volume of vehicles and traffic on site.
Although they had previously identified the risk and how they could prevent
workers being hit by vehicles they did not put the measures in places.
Sundorne Products (Llanidloes)
Limited, part of the Potter Group, in Henfaes lane, Welshpool, Powys pleaded
guilty to breaching Section 2 and Section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work
(1974) Act and were fined £180,000 and ordered to pay costs of £7,657.10.
HSE inspector Mhairi Duffy
said:
“It is extremely important to identify how to protect your workers but
you must back this up with action. This worker’s and his families lives have
been changed forever because Sundorne Products Ltd failed to take action and
protect their workers from being run over by vehicles on the site.
All businesses that have high
volumes of vehicles on their site can learn from this case.”
HSE Health and Safety Myths Buster
Banned from using antibacterial wipes
Issue
An employee was advised that
using antibacterial wipes to clean inside vehicles could lead to the
development of a ‘superbug’.
Panel opinion
Superbugs are a real cause for
concern for everyone, but the use of chemical disinfectants in antibacterial
wipes is not going to make the situation worse when used correctly. The advice
on the use of antibacterial wipes is to use one wipe per surface and then
discard to avoid potentially spreading any bacteria to other surfaces. They are
effective for the purpose being proposed, and seem like a sensible choice.
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