Risk, Health and Safety Information

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.