E-mail this to a friendFirm prosecuted after worker falls
Published 03/10/2007
A company has been fined £9,000 and ordered to pay costs of £5,266 after an incident in which a worker fell through a fragile roof.
Stoneswood Construction, which is based in Cheshire and provides new and renovated homes and buildings across the north-west, pled guilty to health and safety charges at Southport Magistrates Court.
The accident occurred in February 2006 when Patrick Gillespie, a ground worker, fell five to six metres through an asbestos cement roof sheet to the concrete floor below.
He suffered a laceration to his head and bruising to the spine as a result of the impact.
Health and safety inspector Robert Hodkinson said: "Falls through fragile material give rise to more fatal accidents in the construction industry than any other single cause."
In 2005-06, there were 24 fatalities and 917 major injuries in construction as a result of falls from height, he added.
Related articles
- Risk Report - A matter of time - 13 Nov 2008
- This might be a cure - 13 Nov 2008
- Insurers mount legal challenge to halt pleural plaques damages - 13 Nov 2008
- MoJ works to 2009 deadline - 13 Nov 2008
- Claims: Occupational stress - The science of stress - 13 Nov 2008