Latest News from Bravanark.co.uk

Fire at TK Maxx distribution centre contained by sprinkler system

Fri, 18 May 2012 12:28:05 GMT

9th May 2012
Sprinklers have contained a fire which broke out in a bailing machine at a TK Maxx distribution centre in Staffordshire.

The fire broke out at the facility in Chesterton at around 1.20 am on 2 May. When crews arrived in response to the automatic fire alarm, they found that the sprinkler system had activated and contained the fire. 36 people had evacuated the building.

Station manager Ian Read said: "By the time we got there the fire had been controlled by the sprinkler system. Firefighters opened up the machine to then fully extinguish the fire and cool the machine.

"We also used thermal imaging cameras to check if the fire had spread to the main part of the building. The sprinklers however had done a fantastic job of keeping the fire contained to the machine meaning only that piece of equipment has been fire damaged.”

Staff were able to resume work at around 4.30 am.

“Had sprinklers not been fitted the chances are further equipment would have been damaged and work would have needed to be halted,” added Mr Read.

"There was also the danger of the fire spreading quite rapidly without sprinklers; the machine involved is used to compress cardboard which would catch fire and burn very quickly given the chance.&rdquo ;

Farming partnership fined after two workers severely injured

Fri, 18 May 2012 12:26:59 GMT

26th April 2012
A Montrose farming partnership has been fined after two agricultural workers were severely injured when a telescopic handler went out of control, fell down a steep bank and came to rest at the top of a cliff.

David Alston Junior, 19, and Ian Murray, 54, were working for Nether Dysart Farms, a limited liability partnership, when the incident occurred on 12 May 2010.

Arbroath Sheriff Court heard that Mr Alston and Mr Murray were carrying out repairs to a fence in a field between the East Coast railway line and cliffs overlooking Lunan Bay and the North Sea.

Equipment needed to carry out the fencing work was loaded into the bucket of a telehandler which Mr Alston drove, following Mr Murray as he walked along the fence inspecting it to see where repairs were needed.

Mr Murray stopped to examine a section of fence in a corner of the field that ran parallel to a steep bank leading down to the cliff edge. Mr Alston stopped the telehandler on a bank a a short distance away.

However, as he went to open the door the telehandler began to move. He shouted to Mr Murray that he was unable to stop the vehicle before attempting to restart it and steer it to safety, but he was unable to put it into neutral.

Mr Murray ran to help as the vehicle continued to move down the bank. At the same time Mr Alston jumped from the driver's door but was caught between the back wheel of the vehicle and a fencepost. Mr Murray was also struck and knocked under the rear wheel of the vehicle, which ran over the left side of his body.

The telehandler went through the fence and rolled down the steep bank, shedding its load from the bucket, and came to a halt lying on its nearside about 29 metres from the fence, at the top of the cliff.

Mr Alston was able to use his mobile telephone to call his father, a partner at Nether Dysart Farms, for help. He suffered a cracked pelvis and was hospitalised for two days.

Mr Murray suffered a fractured pelvis, dislocated right shoulder, fractured ribs and solar bone, a punctured lung, damaged shoulder blade and a severed urethra. He had to undergo major surgery on his pelvic injuries and to repair his urethra. He still finds walking difficult and tires easily and although he has returned to work he is still mainly carrying out light duties. He has also been left with scarring to his hip, back and abdomen.

Following the incident, an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and officers from Tayside Police Crash Investigation Unit found that either the parking brake had been inadvertently released or had failed to hold the vehicle on the slope.

The HSE investigation also revealed that Nether Dysart Farms had never provided any formal training in tractor driver for Mr Alston, though he had been informally taught by his father from a young age.

Approved codes of practice make it clear that young people under 18 should not be permitted to drive tractors or self-propelled vehicles unless they had been on a formal training course. Mr Alston was only 17 at the time of the incident.

The court also heard that Mr Alston should not have been driving the telehandler in this particular field at all, as Approved Code of Practice states young people should not be allowed to drive a tractor unless the ground is free of steep slopes.

At Arbroath Sheriff Court today, Nether Dysart Farms, of Lunan, Montrose, was fined £8,000 after pleading guilty to breaching Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.

After sentencing, HSE inspector Gillian McLean said:

"Given Mr Alston's age and his lack of formal training, he should never have been allowed to drive the telehandler. Had the appropriate guidance been followed this incident could have been avoided.

"Instead, not only did Mr Alston suffer injuries himself, but Mr Murray sustained severe injuries which required multiple operations and have had lasting implications.

"There was a clear potential for this to have been a fatal incident, all because the employer failed to ensure a safe system of work was in place by not following the Approved Codes of Practice." ;

Egg firm fined after worker's fingers cut off

Fri, 18 May 2012 12:25:57 GMT

24th April 2012
A Worcestershire egg company has been fined after a worker severed two fingers while cleaning a drain on a production line.

The 25 year-old employee lost part of his index and middle fingers on his right hand when it came into contact with a heavy duty blade at Bumble Hole Foods Ltd, Fockbury, Bromsgrove on 26 August 2010.

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation found the risks of cleaning around the blade had not been adequately assessed or controlled and employees were able to reach dangerous moving parts while the blade was running.

Redditch Magistrates' Court was told Bumble Hole Foods Ltd were aware of the risks following a similar incident in 2008. The court also heard how the training for this work was carried out by employees who were not qualified to train others.

Bumble Hole Foods Ltd, of Fockbury, Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998.

The company was fined £13,000 and ordered to pay costs of £6,303.

Speaking after today's hearing, HSE inspector Christopher Gregory said:

"This incident was entirely foreseeable and easily preventable. The risks of cleaning around the drain had not been adequately assessed or controlled so unfortunately, a much larger price has been paid, not least by their employee.

"This case shows the importance of learning from mistakes and ensuring that formal advice from the HSE is not ignored. Employers have a duty to act on their findings. If Bumble Hole Foods had taken prompt action after the previous incident, this could so easily have been avoided." ;

Construction firm fined for repeatedly ignoring safety warnings

Fri, 18 May 2012 12:24:18 GMT

26th April 2012
A construction company has been fined for continuing unsafe working practices at a site in Upper Norwood, Croydon, after repeatedly ignoring safety warnings.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) identified multiple failings at a project on Sylvan Hill run by Unicorn Services Limited, where the Kent-based firm was building a four-storey block of flats.

Westminster Magistrates' Court heard yesterday (25 April) that on 26 September 2011 a HSE inspector served eight Prohibition Notices to stop dangerous practices at the site after identifying serious safety breaches.

The Notices covered dangerous scaffolding, people working unsafely at height, fire-related hazards and dangerous electrical equipment.

Unicorn also supplied "appallingly inadequate" documentation for risk assessments and project management.

HSE returned to the construction site in October and discovered little or no improvement had been made to many of the illegal practices.

An Improvement Notice was subsequently served requiring the site manager to arrange adequate training in order to safely manage construction operations. However, the manager in question failed to meet a compliance date of late November.

Unicorn Services Limited, of Montpellier Avenue, Bexley, was found guilty of breaching Regulation 26(2) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 for its poor site management and failure to adhere to enforcement action. The company was fined £20,000 and was also ordered to pay £5,940 in costs.

After the hearing, HSE Inspector Andrew Verrall-Withers said:

"Unicorn Services Limited blatantly ignored enforcement notices and continued to neglect its duty of care to its workforce, most of whom were vulnerable migrant workers.

"The construction site at Sylvan Hill was a potential death trap, with scant regard for safety or employee welfare. Even though there were no reported incidents at the site, serious safety breaches were routinely committed that could have resulted in death or serious injury.

"The work was underpinned by poor management and appallingly inadequate paperwork - total recklessness according to the court. General standards fell well below those expected of a competent principal contractor, which the Health and Safety Executive will simply not tolerate." ;

Recycling firm fined for subjecting workers to lead poisoning

Fri, 18 May 2012 12:23:24 GMT

23rd April 2012
An Edmonton-based recycling company has been fined for failing to protect employees working with lead.

Metal and Waste Recycling Ltd, of Albert Works, Kenninghall Rd, Edmonton had bought and was stripping some lead-sheathed copper cabling from British Telecom (BT) after the network began to be changed from copper to fibre optic cable.

An investigation carried out by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that between October 2008 and July 2009, more than 90 workers - most of whom were Romanian - were significantly exposed to lead as a result of this process.

HSE inspectors visited the site in April 2009 after an employee complained about insufficient protection when working with lead. During the site visit, HSE found nothing had been done to reduce lead exposure, with inadequate ventilation, face masks or respiratory equipment available.

It also found that although gloves were provided by the company, workers wore their own clothes, potentially spreading lead to other people and their own homes when they left work. Metal and Waste Recycling Ltd had not carried out blood tests or other health checks which are legally required when working with lead.

When HSE's appointed doctor carried out tests, 23 workers were found to have significantly high levels of lead in their blood. Of these, six people had symptoms of lead poisoning and were referred to St Thomas' Hospital poisons unit and two were put on chelation therapy by consultant toxicologists.

HSE Inspector Chris Tilley said:

"Lead exposure is a recognised cause of occupational ill health and its dangers are well known and documented. Working with lead requires adequate measures to either prevent or control exposure and appropriate monitoring of employees' blood lead levels.

"In this case there was an abysmal lack of care from the company. It failed to implement adequate control measures, carry out any health surveillance of their workers and provide adequate welfare facilities.

"The company fell far short of its legal duties and exposed its employees to an unacceptable level of risk which resulted in six people suffering lead poisoning and a further two workers needing hospital treatment."

At Westminster Magistrates' Court today, Metal and Waste Recycling Ltd pleaded guilty breaching the Control of Lead at Work Regulations 2002 between 1 November 2008 and 1 October 2009. The company was fined £49,500 and ordered to pay £25,483 in costs .

Dorset builder ignored asbestos risks

Fri, 18 May 2012 12:22:05 GMT

30th April 2012
A self-employed builder has been fined for demolishing a building without first carrying out an asbestos survey.

Stuart Pearson, of Verwood, Dorset, was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) at Guildford Magistrates' Court for breaching the Control of Asbestos Regulations between 20 April and 1 May 2011.

The court was told today (30 April) he had been employed to carry out the demolition of a house in Woking, Surrey, before groundworks were laid for a new property.

Mr Pearson was given a recent Asbestos Management Survey of one area of the house that had been carried out for the previous owner. The survey had been commissioned after a plumber had refused to repair the boiler due to the presence of asbestos.

The survey highlighted that there were 12 metres of asbestos in poor condition with two of three areas classified as 'high risk'. It went on to state: 'This material is in very poor condition and debris now exists around the boiler and the floor within the rest of the room. This room must not be accessed until a full environmental clean and removal of all asbestos-containing materials have been carried out by a licensed asbestos contractor.'

The report added that the removal had to be undertaken in controlled conditions with the use of 'enclosures, airlocks, negative pressure units and decontamination units.'

However, Mr Pearson went ahead and demolished the property without having a pre-demolition survey carried out on the entire property to ensure that all asbestos was identified and removed.

HSE began an investigation after a scientific officer from Woking Borough Council visited the site and raised concerns about possible asbestos contamination.

Mr Pearson, of Badger Way, Verwood, Dorset, pleaded guilty to a breach of Regulation 5 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006. He was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay costs of £7,500.

After the hearing, HSE Inspector Russell Beckett, said:

"Before any demolition work is undertaken a survey must be carried out to identify any asbestos present and prevent exposure to anyone working on site and to those who subsequently process the waste. Any asbestos must be removed in the correct manner.

"Asbestos is the single greatest cause of work-related deaths in the UK and the dangers are well known in the construction and property industries.

"Asbestos is not an historical threat. It is current and it faces tradesmen all the time. This man has risked his own health and the health of others who were on the site."

Around 4,000 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 .

Veolia fined after agency worker sustained serious burns

Fri, 18 May 2012 12:21:00 GMT

27th April 2012
Waste management provider Veolia Environmental Services has been fined after an agency worker was seriously burned by hot ash at an incineration depot in Deptford.

The employee, who does not want to be named, sustained 17 per cent burns to his body whilst cleaning ash from a filtration hopper at a Veolia plant on Landman Way on29 December 2009.

The ash fell onto him when he entered the hopper and started prodding it with a rod in order to clear a blockage. He was hospitalised for almost a month as a result of the burns he sustained.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) into the incident found Veolia did not follow its own policies and procedures for the management of dangerous tasks of this nature. This put a vulnerable worker at risk by failing to provide him with adequate information or supervision.

City of London Magistrates' Court heard yesterday (27 April) that the employee, from Eastern Europe, spoke little English and had not been properly briefed in the working practices at the incineration plant.

Veolia ES SELCHP Ltd, of Pentonville Road, London, N1, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 for supervisory failings that led to dangerous working practices. The company was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay full costs of £12,243.

After the hearing, HSE Inspector Kerry Williams said:

"The victim was a vulnerable worker who should have been protected whilst working for Veolia Environmental Services. However, he wasn't provided with the basic information, training or supervision to allow him to complete his job safely. As a result he was badly exposed and he sustained severe burns in an incident that could easily have been avoided.

"Veolia operates a high hazard site in Deptford and as such should ensure its systems are sufficiently robust to ensure people are not placed at unnecessary risk." ;

Shipyard fined after apprentice fell from scaffolding

Fri, 18 May 2012 12:19:51 GMT

27th April 2012
An apprentice worker was badly injured after he fell off scaffolding which was not properly secured at Pendennis Shipyard Ltd in Falmouth.

In a prosecution brought by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) today (27 April), Truro magistrates heard that David Banks, from St Austell, who was 19 at the time, suffered knee injuries in the fall which happened on 27 April, 2011.

HSE's investigation found that Mr Banks was working in the dry dock to clear and strip away plastic tenting which had been used to enclose a boat while it was being painted.

The teenager was working on the first level of scaffolding boards when they tipped, causing him to fall around two metres to the dock floor below. The injuries sustained to his knees in the fall resulted in Mr Banks needing physiotherapy.

The court heard that Pendennis Shipyard Ltd had already been warned about the risks associated with working at height and had been issued with four Improvement Notices and one Prohibition Notice relating to type of work by the HSE since 2009.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector, Melissa Lai-Hung said:

"Mr Banks was unaware that the scaffold planks were insecure and there were no safety rails in place.

"The company provided no safe working method for its workforce, there was no risk assessment for the work and a lack of information, training, instruction and supervision at the site. This incident could easily have had much more serious consequences for Mr Banks."

Pendennis Shipyard Ltd, of The Docks, Falmouth, pleaded guilty to a breach of Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and was fined £6,000 and ordered to pay £6,288 in costs .

Steel firm in court over employee's injuries

Fri, 18 May 2012 12:18:10 GMT

2nd May 2012
A Preston steel firm has appeared in court after a working platform slid off the forks of a forklift truck and struck one of its employees.

The 50-year-old fractured a rib and suffered muscle and back injuries when he was hit by the heavy metal platform at EDV Reinforcements Ltd on the Redscar Industrial Estate on 20 January 2011.

The company, which manufactures and supplies steel products, was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after an investigation found the platform had not been secured to the forklift, and instead was just resting on the forks.

Preston Magistrates' Court was today told the truck was being used to lift a pile of steel mesh when the platform slid off. No one was standing on the platform at the time, but the injured worker was on the ground nearby.

EDV Reinforcements Ltd pleaded guilty to a breach of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 by failing to ensure the safety of its employees.

The company, of Longridge Road in Preston, was fined £7,000 and ordered to pay £3,566 in prosecution costs.

Speaking after the hearing, the investigating inspector at HSE, Richard Clarke, said:

"The company should never have allowed the platform to be lifted on the forklift truck without it being properly secured.

"Sadly, one of EDV's employees suffered serious injuries as a result of this negligence, and it was an incident that could easily have been avoided.

"This case should act as a warning to companies to make sure heavy equipment is properly secured to forklifts before being lifted."

According to the latest figures, nearly 4,000 people suffered a major injury while working in the manufacturing industry in Great Britain in 2010/11 and 27 lost their lives .

Global brick making firm fined after worker crushed

Fri, 18 May 2012 12:16:34 GMT

30th April 2012
A multinational brick making company has been fined after a worker suffered serious injuries when he was crushed on a conveyor belt at its Worcestershire factory.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted Wienerberger Ltd following the incident on 19 October 2009 at the company's site at Hartlebury, near Kidderminster.

Kidderminster Magistrates' Court heard how the 48-year-old man, who does not want to be named, was rectifying a fault which had stopped a brick packaging line from moving.

He entered the safety zone around the line, which was protected by a perimeter fence with interlocked access gates, and climbed up onto the conveyor belt to fix the problem. However, the line suddenly restarted, activating a pallet lifter which came down and crushed him.

He suffered a serious puncture wound to his back, cracked several ribs and sustained extensive bruising to his face and leg. He was off work for six weeks.

HSE's investigation found an interlock on one of the gates, which should have isolated the machinery, had been disconnected some days before the incident to allow a printer within the perimeter fence to be serviced.

The company had also failed to carry out an adequate assessment of the risks arising from working on the printer within the perimeter security fence and the controls required.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Chris Gregory said:

"A man suffered potentially life-changing injuries following an incident that should never have happened.

"Deliberately bypassed interlocking devices are a common cause of injuries in the manufacturing sector.

"Free guidance on guarding standards for machinery has been available from HSE for many years and it is unacceptable to see such basic failings, particularly from a large company."

Wienerberger Ltd, of Brooks Drive, Cheadle Royal Business Park, Cheadle, Cheshire, pleaded guilty today to breaching Regulation 3(1) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and Regulation 11(3) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998. The company was fined a total of £20,000 and ordered to pay full costs of £11,611 .