The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has prosecuted a company in Somerset, following the death of a worker who fell through a factory roof skylight.
Samuel Wright Maxwell, 46, of Wells Somerset was employed by Cooper B Line (CBL) factory in Highbridge, Somerset.
As a maintenance worker, Mr Maxwell had permission to go onto the roofs for various tasks – and did so regularly without adequate and sufficient safety measures being in place.
On the 17 May 2013, he was on the roof working, when colleagues below heard a crash and found Mr Maxwell had fallen seven metres a skylight onto the concrete floor of the rack assembly area below.
He died shortly after the fall.
An HSE investigation found that the roofs at CBL were extensive – and people worked on them regularly, without proper precautions to prevent them falling.
HSE investigators also found that CBL management failed to appreciate the risks to their maintenance workers when working on the roofs – the company had carried out an inadequate generic risk assessment, which failed to identify the risks and control measures necessary when its employees were working at height.
At Taunton Crown Court, Cooper B-Line Limited of Walrow Industrial Estate, Highbridge in Somerset pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.
The company was fined £210,000 and ordered to pay costs of £36,493.52.
HSE Inspector Annette Walker said:
“The senior management of companies must learn from this tragic case that they need to take the health and safety of their workers seriously.
“In this case, a confusing system of work had developed and unintentionally encouraged dangerous methods.
“Falls from height continue to account for a significant proportion of all workplace deaths and serious injuries.
“Falls through fragile roofs and skylights sadly happen all too often –businesses should ensure that all roof work, including routine maintenance, is properly planned and carried out safely.”
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