Building Site Death in Shafsbury
A property development company was ordered to pay out over г50,000 in fines and costs after Bournemouth Crown Court heard that a Labourer was killed when he was struck by a moving telescopic materials handler on a building site. The HSE brought the prosecution against a company that was constructing new housing in Shaftsbury, Dorset when the accident occurred on 17th June 1999.

On the day of the accident a Labourer was crossing an access road used by vehicles to transport materials to and from the site. As he was crossing the road he was struck by a passing telescopic materials handler. He fell underneath the vehicle and received a glancing blow to the side of the head from it's rear offside wheel. The driver of the machine was not aware of the accident until he traveled back across the access road five minutes later.

HSE Inspectors found a number of safety failures at the site. In particular the access road was the only route leading onto the site and was used by both vehicles and pedestrians. There were no separate marked paths to show pedestrians where to walk and no barriers to separate them from vehicles. In addition the court heard, the company failed to draw up an adequate health and safety plan before any work began at the site which would have set out how transport risks were to be managed.

The company have now stopped using this type of handler after it was found that drivers had a visibility problem on the right hand side of the vehicle.

Acknowledgements for these pictures to Safety Management Magazine, published by the British Safety Council

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Man looses finger and then a cover up
A serious accident causing permanent disfigurement occurred with a lift truck on October 11th 1999 in Blackwood South Wales when the company's MD was operating a truck whilst another employee was trying to adjust the width of the fork setting by hand. It is believed that the MD asked the injured worker to do this while he stayed in the cab of the truck and it would seem that he was distracted when an iron bar fell. In any event he accidentally knocked the truck's control lever and the forks dropped slicing the top of the finger from the injured party's hand who spent 2 months off work as a result.

The person driving the truck had received no formal training in its use and it was common for untrained persons to use trucks at the premises. In addition the company failed to notify the HSE of the accident in accordance with the RIDDOR regulations and the MD made a false entry as to the cause of the accident in the firms accident book.

The company was fined г5000 for breaching section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act, a further г1000 for a breach of the RIDDOR regulations and the MD was fined a further г1000 for intentionally obstructing a Factory Inspector in the execution of his duties. A further г500 fine was imposed for the false entry in the accident book and both prosecuted parties were ordered to pay prosecution costs of г224.77

Acknowledgements for these pictures to Safety Management Magazine, published by the British Safety Council
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Details for Case No. F100000250 Defendant Peugeot Motor Company plc SummaryVisiting commercial delivery driver suffered severe leg injuries when run over by fork lift truck in the loading bay when returning to vehicle from rest area. Common practice for visiting drivers to walk across the loading deck to gain access to rest area. No risk assessments made for safe circulation of vehicles and pedestrians. Floor markings indicating restricted access to the loading deck illegible, no designated pedestrian routes to rest area.
Offence Date16/02/99
Total Fineг12,000.00
Total Costs Awarded to HSEг884.10
Location of Offence Address Peugeot Motor Co
Ryton Plant Po Box 46
London Road
Ryton On Dunsmore
COVENTRY West Midlands
CV8 3DZ England
Region WEST MIDLANDS
Local AuthorityCoventry
IndustryManufacturing
Main Activity34100 - 34100 Manufacture of motor vehicles
Type of LocationFixed
HSE DetailsHSE GroupEng/Utilities East
HSE DirectorateField Operations Directorate HSE Area 10 HSE DivisionMidlands

Reconstructed from the H&S pages. No Responsibility accepted for the accuracy of this article

Details for Case No. F100000257 Peugeot Motor Company plc
Summary Production operator received leg injuries when run struck by fork lift truck when leaving his workstation through welding curtains into gangway. Common practice for operators to use this route to enter and exit the booth despite risk assessment.

Offence Date 17/06/99
Total Fine г3,000.00
Total Costs Awarded to HSE г884.10
Location of OffencePeugeot Motor Co Ryton Plant
Po Box 46
London Road
Ryton On Dunsmore
COVENTRY
West Midlands
CV8 3DZ

Region Eng/Utilities East
Local Authority Coventry
Industry Manufacturing
Main Activity34100 - 34100 Manufacture of motor vehicles
Type of Location Fixed

Reconstructed from the H&S pages. No Responsibility accepted for the accuracy of this article

Details for Case No. F090000319 Defendant Belvoir Associates Ltd Oakham Summary EMAP Self employed electrician working in Company prem from ladder knocked off by FLT sustaining multiple fractures to both heals.Breach of MHRC reg 3 No Written risk ass relating to risk to contractors from use of fork lift trucks (would have shown shown action necessary to comply with HSWA S3. Breach of HSWA S3 failure to ensure SFAIRP non employees not a exposed to risk to contactors from FLT use. Pr approved as remedial measures reasonably practical (barriers ,instruction, supervision, training) Previous written advice given on risk ass, visitors, Use of FLT.

Offence Date 27/01/00
Total Fine г9,000.00
Total Costs Awarded to HSE г674.65
Location of Offence Address Unit 51B&52 Pillings Rd Ie
Pillings Road
OAKHAM
Leicestershire
LE15 6QF England
Region EAST MIDLANDS
Local Authority Rutland Unitary Authority ( as of 4/97 )
Industry Manufacturing
Main Activity 36140 - 36140 Manufacture of other furniture
Type of Location Fixed

http://www.hse-databases.co.uk/prosecutions/

Reconstructed from the H&S pages. No Responsibility accepted for the accuracy of this article

Fatal accident to an HGV driver in a waste paper recovery depot

A Waste paper company was fined г16,000 after a court heard that one of its employees was crushed to death under a lift truck (shown opposite) because it failed to ensure that pedestrians and vehicles were properly segregated at its site. The court was told that a 51 year old lorry driver who was delivering waste paper to the company on 6th August 1999 parked his wagon inside the plant's warehouse and one of the firm's Directors began using the truck to unload the lorry. Whilst the lorry was being unloaded from one side the lorry driver walked around the vehicle to begin opening the remaining covers. The truck was carrying bales of paper which had been wrapped into six foot high stacks and although there were no witnesses it would appear that the deceased stepped in front of the truck and that the operator's vision was obscured by the load he was carrying.

The court also heard how the firm had failed to draw up a safe system of work for vehicle loading although that had now been corrected. In addition to the fine the company was ordered to pay the full prosecution costs of г767.84

It is our intention to update these pages as and when we get news of severe injury or fatality involving fork lift trucks in the UK. We have deliberately left out names of individuals and companies concerned to avoid unnecessary distress.
Acknowledgements for these pictures to Safety Management Magazine, published by the British Safety Council
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Briefing from the Paper and Printing NIG
On 6 August 1999 Mr Perry, a 53 year old HGV driver, was killed at a waste paper recovery depot in Blackburn, Lancashire operated by Shirley's (Canterbury Street) Ltd.
The deceased was crushed by a 3.5 tonne Fork Lift Truck being used to unload bales of waste paper from the curtain sided vehicle driven by Mr Perry. Initial investigations revealed that forward vision for thedriver of the Fork Lift Truck was obstructed by the load of 3 bales being carried at the time.
HSE is carrying out further investigations. The Paper and Printing NIG reminds firms to examine their policies with respect to:
-carrying loads on fork lift or clamp trucks that may obscure the forward vision for the driver,
-segregation of pedestrians and vehicle movements, and
-the provision of high visibility clothing for people working near moving vehicles."
Branches are asked to bring this information to the attention of all companies operating lift trucks, and particularly paper mills and waste paper recovery plants. This tragic event highlights the hazards involved
in lift truck operations, the problems of handling waste paper bales,and the general need to ensure good visibility at all times when lift trucks are in use. Safety reps should ensure that companies review all operations involving lift trucks and ensure all relevant health and safety standards are being met at all times. Relevant information is provided in the new GPMU Safety Reps Handbook. Reference should also be made to "Rider operated lift trucks: Operator training - Approved Code of Practice and Guidance" HSC L117 г5.00 1999, and to "Safety in working with lift trucks HSE HSG6 1993 (currently under revision).HSE publications are available from HSE Books tel. 01787 881165. No Responsibility accepted for the accuracy of this article

WYMONDHAM: Wednesday June 24 1999
An elderly woman suffered head and suspected spinal injuries after the car in which she was a passenger collided with a 15 meter steel girder as it was being carried across the road by a fork lift truck yesterday. Firefighters cut away the roof of the Hyundai to release the woman after the accident in Ayton Road, Wymondham, about midday. She was taken to the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital.

Copyright й 1998 Eastern Counties Newspapers Group Ltd, all rights reserved. http://www.ecn.co.uk
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Warehouseman's death was an accident
WAREHOUSEMAN Gordon Morling died when a storage rack collapsed and smothered him, an inquest heard today.
The industrial accident happened at Lehnkering Logistics at Beardmore Park, Martlesham, on January 29 this year. The 38-year-old, from Pond Close, Felixstowe, had worked in the warehouse of the company since September 1997.
He was working with a colleague, unloading containers, when the accident happened, the hearing at Ipswich Crown Court was told.
He was driving a reach truck along an aisle when a section of racking collapsed, burying him under tons of debris. A reach truck is similar to a fork-lift truck but can lift higher and has a fork which can reach in and out as well as up and down.
His colleague did not see the racking collapse but heard it crash and turned to see a cloud of dust. His immediate concern was for Mr Morling but he could not see him so he went to get help.
A Suffolk Accident Rescue Service doctor was at the scene within minutes but Mr Morling was certified dead at the scene.
The inquest heard from a consultant pathologist that Mr Morling had had a known heart murmur since 1970. However, he had died from respiratory failure due to accidental smothering and traumatic asphyxia. Health and Safety experts gave evidence concerning the safety of Mr Morling's working environment and his expertise as a driver. Brian Roebuck, a representative for the Health and Safety Laboratory, told the court that the warehouse used typical racking for its storage and the shelving was not over-loaded.
He said: 'According to my investigation the loading was more or less at the limit. It was within the guidelines but only just.' He said that he had also found no fault with the reach truck Mr Morling had been driving and suggested that the racking may have collapsed after receiving a slight knock from the truck. However, he said: 'None of this is absolutely 100 per cent proof that this is what happened but the balance of probability suggests this happened.'
Also giving evidence was Philip Gore, a health and safety officer for Suffolk Costal County Council. He said that Mr Morling had previously driven reach and fork-lift trucks for a company from 1985 until 1992 and then fork-lift trucks for another company up until the time he had joined Lehnkering Logistics. He had received a certificate for fork-lift driving at his previous employer following a one day refresher course but had not received any additional training in the 16 months he had been with the Martlesham based company.
Instructing a jury of five men and five women, Ipswich coroner Nowell Watkins said: 'It is not permissible for us to start trying to apportion blame. You have to accept that it was an horrendous accident and a man has lost his life.'
The jury returned a verdict of accidental death.

Extract from: Evening Star web pages Evening Star, July 28 1999 Star News index

Tragedy: Worker dies in accident while loading truck
Inquiry begins into lorry death
An investigation is under way after a man died in an industrial accident.
The man (in his late 50's) is believed to have been crushed to death while he was loading up a lorry at a transport firm in Peterborough England.
Police were called to the depot at about 21.50 to find the victim, a local man to the area had died at the scene from crush injuries. The victim who is believed to have grown up children leaves a wife. The Health and safety Executive has launched a full investigation. An inspector of the local Police force said "It would appear that while loading a lorry using a forklift truck, the victim became trapped between the two vehicles." He went on to say "We received a call to say a man had been crushed by a forklift and I understand he died at the scene before the Police arrived"
The victim's next door neighbour said about him "He was a very good neighbour although we did not know him that well" "His wife came round this morning to tell me the news. She was absolutely devastated"
A Health and Safety Executive spokes woman said " I can confirm that an employee of a local transport firm was working on a night shift and loading a HGV using a fork lift truck when an incident happened" "Investigations are now under way. We are seeing if there are any witnesses to the accident and will be interviewing them later". The Transport firm declined to comment.
Extract from: Peterborough Evening Telegraph 24th June 1999

A self-employed roofer died
On Saturday after suffering severe head injuries when he fell off a fork-lift truck in Hersham. Colin Wright, 50, was taken to St Peters Hospital in Chertsey but died shortly after arriving there at about 9.30am.
With his son, he had been slating the roof of a house at Burwood Park School,in Eriswell Road, which closed four years ago.
The Health and Safety Executive sent an inspector to the scene and is still investigating, but said it was too early to say what action it would take.
Mr Wright, who is believed to have been from south London, sustained his injuries after falling approximately six meters. He had raised a pallet of slates on a fork-lift truck so that it was almost level with the scaffolding he was working on at the rear of the house. He then turned the engine off with the forks in the raised position and the stabilisers down and started to unload the slates from the scaffolding with his son. Mr Wright could not reach the slates at the back of the pallet which was resting on the two forks of the truck. He decided to climb onto the pallet and was thrown to the ground when it tipped over.
An HSE spokesman said: An investigation is being carried out to see if a prosecution can be made. At this stage it is too early to say if anyone is at fault.
Police believe Mr Wright may have had a heart attack during the accident but do not know if this led to, or was because of the fall.
An inquest into the death of the roofer was due to be opened yesterday at Guildford
Bromley, November 23rd:

http://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/local_london/leadstories/november/ed02231100.html
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Judge apologetic about г20,000 workplace death fine
Donald Robson, 48, a warehouseman, died from head injuries sustained in a fall of over 6 metres on the premises of his employer Naylor Food Group of Cross Green, Leeds in July 1999.
The unwitnessed accident is believed to have occurred as he manoevred a pallet truck on an upper floor level of his employer's coldstore. Leeds Crown Court heard Leeds Council prosecution describe events as: У ... an accident waiting to happen - I think it was due to basic inefficiency on the part of the company.Ф

Absolute disgrace
Judge Scott fined the Company г20,000 with costs amounting to almost г3,000. They admitted failing to meet the requirements of both the Health and Safety at Work Act and the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations. He immediately apologised for the level of fine, which he said should have been around г250,000, but was unable to set the higher amount warranted because of constraints arising from company restructuring and ability to pay.
Mr Robson's widow said of the outcome: УWe feel totally let down. We came here expecting some sort of justice, but this is just a terrible joke." His daughter summed up her feelings saying; УItТs disgustingФ.
The company expressed its remorse over the event through its legal representation.
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Company fined after fatal accident
Mold Crown Court heard of a "chaotic state of affairs"
A woodchip company in north Wales has been fined г75,000 following two serious accidents at its factory.
Mold Crown Court heard that the death of 55-year-old Dewi Jones Roberts at Kronospan in Chirk could have been avoided.

The Judge, Mr Recorder Merfyn Hughes QC, said it was clear that a pre-production area where sawdust was stored had been unsafe.
Kronospan had been warned the situation was an accident waiting to happen, he said, and the measures it took following the first accident were woefully inadequate. The court also heard there had been nothing to keep pedestrians and vehicles apart in a busy pre-production area.
Lorry driver Mr Jones Roberts, from Penycae, near Wrexham, was a sub-contractor at the site. His lorry had been moved from where he had left it and he was walking to his vehicle when he was hit and run over by a large Komatsu 600 front-loading vehicle.

Mr Jones Roberts died instantly from his injuries.

Visibility from the loader was such that the driver did not know a collision had occurred. The tragedy happened in July last year.

- just three months after an earlier accident.

On that occasion, scaffolder Frank Larty, from Liverpool, was lucky to escape serious injury when he was scooped up in an open bucket of one of the factory's the loading machines.

Loader crashed

There had also been other accidents including one where a loader crashed into a van and damaged it.

The court heard the visibility for drivers of the loading machines was restricted with a black spot in front - made worse when the bucket was loaded.

Judge Hughes said there was a chaotic state of affairs, with lorries, forklift trucks and pedestrians in the area where the Komatsu vehicles were being driven, with none having any kind of priority.

"There was absolutely no regulation at all," he said.
'Degree of complacency'
Prosecuting Huw Roberts accused Kronospan of complacency over safety, a claim rejected by Andrew Pickering, defending.

Mr Pickering said the company had spent г2m over a three-year period on safety and had immediately taken action to prevent a reoccurrence.The company admitted two health and safety offences and in addition to the г75,000 fine were ordered to pay costs of г7,386. HSE inspector Brian Neale said it was a terrible tragedy that should not have happened.

http://news.bbc.co.uk
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