Scaffolder fined £40k after worker paralysed
10 January 2012Bury, UK, firm Spectra Scaffolding has been fined £40,000 by Stoke-On-Trent Crown Court and ordered to pay £45,000 costs after a worker was paralysed in a crane accident.
The court heard that David Collins, a Spectra employee, was operating a lorry loader for the firm during a job refurbishing retail premises in Stoke-on-Trent in November 2008, when he was struck by a load dropped by the crane.
Collins was unloading 21ft long scaffolding tubes from the back of a truck. As he stood under the load operating the crane controls, one of the lifting slings detached from the crane hook, causing the metal tubes, which weighed nearly 1.5t, to fall onto him. He suffered severe injuries to his head, back and leg, and is now paraplegic.
The UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation into the incident found Collins had not been properly trained or supervised and Spectra Scaffolding had failed to plan the work adequately.
The court also heard that a safety catch on the crane hook was faulty, which led to the scaffolding tubes falling. Although the company had known about this for some time before the incident, no action was taken to replace the catch and Collins had not been trained to realise its importance.
HSE inspector Lindsay Hope said after the hearing, "As a result of this incident Collins has been severely disabled and could easily have been killed.
"Companies that operate lorry-mounted cranes must ensure their operators undertake appropriate, recognised training in all aspects. Operators of lorry-mounted cranes must be competent to use the equipment properly and plan safe lifting in variable site conditions.
"In this instance, the lift wasn’t properly planned or supervised and Mr Collins hadn’t been sufficiently trained in how to use the crane and slings properly.
"Furthermore, the equipment had not been properly maintained and should never have been used."
