Risk, Health and Safety Information

Construction firm sentenced after basement fall paralyses worker

A Southwark construction company has been ordered to pay more than £126,000 in fines and costs after a worker was left paralysed from the waist down when he fell eight metres from an unguarded window space into a basement.

The 38-year-old, of Beckenham, who does not want to be named, damaged his spinal cord in the incident at Grove Park, in Southwark, on 1 July 2011.

He is no longer able to walk or work and has had to overcome major physical and emotional trauma as he adjusts to life in a wheelchair.

His employer Habitat Construction LLP was sentenced for safety failings following an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

Southwark Crown Court heard the injured worker was part of a team transforming two former Victorian hostels into four single town houses, a project that involved demolition, refurbishment and new-build activity.

During the work windows were removed from the buildings, which HSE established happened in an ad-hoc and uncontrolled manner. They were taken out at various times and for a variety of reasons, but no measures were put in place to prevent a fall through the spaces it created, such as boarding or guard rails. This meant there were open voids for a period of some four to six weeks.

The missing windows included several on a raised first floor area, which created openings at just above floor level. The worker fell through one of the missing windows in this area while attempting to connect a temporary electricity supply, losing his balance and plunging eight metres onto the concrete floor of a basement below. The court was told the non-guarding of the windows posed a clear danger and that it put multiple Habitat Construction employees and sub-contractors at unnecessary risk because any one of them could have fallen in a similar manner.

Habitat Construction LLP, of Southwark Street, London, SE1, was fined £110,000 and ordered to pay £16,620 in costs after pleading guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.

After the hearing, HSE inspector Toby Webb commented:

“This was an entirely preventable fall that left an employee with permanent, life-changing injuries.

“We found a catalogue of working-at-height risks throughout the site, including the use of simple netting as edge protection to a deep excavation and the removal of windows without installing appropriate protection.

“The unguarded windows posed a clear and extremely serious risk, not only for this unfortunate worker but for others at the site who worked near what were effectively open voids.

“Sub-contractors were also placed in danger because there was nothing to stop equipment or debris from falling from the window spaces.

“The onus was on Habitat Construction to ensure appropriate safety measures were in place, but the company clearly failed its legal responsibilities in this regard.”

 

Building firm fined after worker’s finger severed

A Norwich building company has been fined after an employee lost a finger on a poorly guarded machine.

The worker, who does not wish to be named, was operating a vertical spindle moulding machine to cut a groove in a straight piece of wood when his right hand came into contact with the cutter, severing the little finger.

Sprowston-based WS Lusher & Son Ltd was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after an investigation established the incident, on 17 December 2012, could easily have been prevented had better guarding been in place.

Norwich Magistrates’ Court heard there was also inadequate management and supervision of the way the work on the machine was being carried out.

WS Lusher & Son Ltd, registered at School Lane, Sprowston, Norwich, was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £4,750 costs after pleading guilty to a single breach of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998.

After the case, HSE Inspector Malcolm Crowther said:

“The worker suffered a painful and needless injury that could easily have been avoided had there been proper safeguards and management supervision of the way work was being carried out on this machine.

“It is vital that operatives of such machines are properly trained and adequately supervised to ensure safe systems of work are used. WS Lusher & Son failed in their duty of care, despite there being industry training available from a number of providers.”

 

Engineering firm in court over worker’s injuries

A Radcliffe company has been fined after a worker suffered serious injuries when he was dragged into dangerous parts of a moving machine.

Peter Wilson, 58, from Bury, was working at Cope Engineering (Radcliffe) Ltd’s plant when the cuff on his overalls was caught by the screws on a rotating three-metre-long cylinder on 9 July 2012.

The company, which produces rollers for the printing, packaging and paper industries, was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after an investigation found the company had not prevented access to dangerous moving parts of the machine.

Sefton Magistrates’ Court in Bootle heard that Mr Wilson was reaching over to adjust a component on the machine when his overalls became caught, pulling him in and twisting him around.

A quick-thinking colleague pushed the emergency stop button and cut Mr Wilson’s overalls to stop them from becoming more entangled before the rotating cylinder came to a halt.

Mr Wilson sustained injuries to his back and knee, and required 12 stitches to his arm. He was off work for seven weeks as a result of his injuries.

The court was told Cope Engineering made several changes to its working practices following the incident, including removing protruding screws from the cylinders, operating the machine at a slower speed when adjustments were being made, and changing the clothing worn by employees.

The company, of Sion Street in Radcliffe, was fined £3,000 and ordered to pay £3,767 costs after pleading guilty to a breach of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE Inspector Helen Mansfield said:

“An employee was badly injured in the incident but it could easily have been much worse if his colleague hadn’t acted quickly to stop the machine and cut his overalls free.

“Workers at the factory were put at a significant risk of their clothes becoming entangled on a daily basis so it was almost inevitable that someone would eventually be injured.

“Cope Engineering should have carried out a proper assessment of the risks faced by workers, and then acted to tackle the dangers. If the measures the company implemented following the incident had been in place sooner, then Peter’s injuries could have been avoided.”

 

Safety failings land engineering firm in court

An engineering company has been fined for safety failings which exposed workers to serious risks of injury from a fall.

UTS Engineering Ltd was undertaking extensive repairs to the roof of its premises during September and October 2013. Work had already been carried out by one of its employees, to inspect the roof, re-felt the canteen roof and clear the gutters.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) carried out an inspection at the premises on 10 October 2013 following a complaint and identified the roof work was being carried out in an unsafe manner with employees at risk of falling from unprotected edges or through fragile roof materials.

HSE immediately issued the company with a Prohibition Notice halting further work at height until adequate fall protection measures were put in place and prosecuted UTS Engineering Ltd for safety breaches.

South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court heard the work had not been properly planned and was not carried out by a person competent in this type of work.

The HSE investigation found that although the roof contained fragile surfaces, specifically Georgian-wired glass roof lights and vertical lights, UTS Engineering Ltd had not assessed its fragility or produced a safe method for the work to be done.

Workers should have been protected by guard rails to prevent someone falling from the edge, and work near fragile materials should have been carried out from stagings, with either workers protected from falling through the fragile materials or by safety netting underneath the roof.

UTS Engineering Ltd, of Pilgrims Way, Bede Industrial Estate, Jarrow, was fined a total of £24,000 and ordered to pay £1,146.80 in costs after pleading guilty to two breaches of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.

Speaking after the case, HSE Inspector Fiona McGarry said:

“While it is fortunate that no-one was injured during these extensive works, employees working on the roof were exposed unnecessarily to high levels of risk.

“Death and serious injury following falls from the edge of roofs or through fragile materials are all too common and proper planning is vital to ensure the work is carried out safely and the correct precautions are identified and used.”

 

Scaffold firm in court after worker’s life-changing injuries

A scaffolding firm and the owner of a roofing company have been fined after a worker suffered serious injuries when he plunged nine metres through a fragile warehouse roof in Northampton.

Labourer Stephen Allibon was walking on fragile asbestos cement sheeting during roofing work on 13 August 2012 when it gave way beneath him. He fell onto a metal pallet and then the concrete floor.

He sustained three fractures to his right arm, multiple fractures to his face and head, a punctured lung, damage to his chest and a severe gash to his right leg.

Mr Allibon, who is still unable to work, now has reduced movement in his right arm and right leg, numbness in his left arm, and suffers chest problems and dizzy spells.

His employer, Beekay Scaffolding Ltd, and contractor William Thomas Toone, trading as Industrial Roofing Services (IRS), were both prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after an investigation identified they had both failed to make sure the work was carried out safely.

Northampton Magistrates’ Court heard that Beekay had been contracted by IRS to erect scaffolding for a warehouse roof repair in Watford village.

Repair work to the roof was planned in two stages. Protective nets and scaffolding were put in place to the south side to allow repairs to take place there before being moved to the north side to complete the work.

However, poor management meant that when Mr Allibon was moving scaffolding poles from the south side of the roof, there was no edge protection and no netting remaining under the perimeter of the roof where he was walking, nor were the scaffolders using platforms of any kind.

HSE found that both companies had agreed safety precautions in advance of the work but both had failed to ensure they were implemented properly during the course of the work, exposing the workers to extreme risk.

Beekay Scaffolding Ltd of Obelisk Rise, Kingsthorpe, Northampton, was fined £6,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,640 after admitting two breaches of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and a single breach of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007.

William Thomas Toone, trading as Industrial Roofing Services (IRS), of The Leys, Roade, Northampton, was fined £2,500 and ordered to pay costs of £1,400 after pleading guilty to a breach of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE Inspector Richard Lockwood said:
“Mr Allibon suffered very serious injuries, but we could easily be talking about a fatal incident. Simple, straightforward, common sense procedures could have prevented this fall and the severe consequences it has had for one worker and his family.

“Both IRS and Beekay Scaffolding fell very far short of a safe and reasonable standard. They were clearly informed of the dangers. If properly used, the precautions would have reduced the risk to a minimal level.

“The dangers of working at height are well-known in industry, yet workers still die or are permanently disabled because of the poor safety standards and lack of safeguards that still exist among some contractors.

 

Developer fined after gas leak leads to railway closure

Commuters endured two hours of rail misery through a forced line closure because a leading housing developer failed to advise ground workers on the presence of an underground gas main, a court has heard.

An excavator struck and ruptured the pipework at a construction site in Norton Fitzwarren, near Taunton, on 11 October 2012, because the driver was completely unaware it was beneath him as he dug a trench.

It caused the closure of the nearby main railway line to the South West for emergency repairs, and today (19 May) landed BDW Trading Ltd, trading as Barratt Homes, in court.

Taunton magistrates were told the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigated the incident at the site of the Old Cider Works, in Station Road, and found that BDW Trading Ltd had failed to properly plan the work.

The company had neglected to contact the utility owners to obtain up-to-date plans of the site. As a result safe digging techniques were not being used because no-one on site had reason to believe they were working anywhere near a gas pipe.   The court heard how a consortium of house builders was engaged in a long-term development project at the site, and that several different sub-contractors had worked there over a number of years prior to work stopping in 2008 due to the economic climate.

Two gas mains operated by separate supply companies run across the site and in 2009 one of these was renewed and re-routed. When building work recommenced in 2012, BDW Trading Ltd supplied its groundwork contractors with site maps that did not cover the entire site, and that did not show the new route of the gas main.

BDW Trading Ltd, of Bardon Hill, Leicestershire was fined £16,000 and ordered to pay £2,500 in costs after pleading guilty to breaching Regulation 34(3) of the Construction (Design & Management) Regulations 2007.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE Inspector Sue Adsett said:

“More than 11,000 cubic metres of gas escaped as a result of this incident, one of the largest releases of gas in the South West in recent years. It was sheer luck no-one was injured. As it was, the incident caused huge disruption to rail services and passengers.

“It could so easily have been prevented if BDW Trading Ltd had obtained up-to-date plans from the gas supplier after pipes had been relocated on their site in 2009, or upon restarting work at the site in 2012.

“BDW Trading Ltd’s fundamental error was to start work in the area without adequate gas utility drawings. House builders should be especially careful when they start working on a site where construction work has stopped and started because vital information may have been lost.”