A refrigeration company has been fined £27,000 after a worker sustained significant injuries when he fell from an incomplete gantry.
The company was replacing a cooler unit located on a gantry 10m above the warehouse floor at a depot in Swindon on 1 February 2017. This required a section of the gantry floor to be removed. An employee fell 2.5 metres through the gap created by this removal and on to a cherry picker, suffering fractured ribs and internal injuries.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the company had failed to properly plan, co-ordinate and supervise the work, including the removal of the gantry floor to ensure the work was carried out in a safe manner to control the risks of falls.
The company pleaded guilty to breaching Section 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2015, and was fined £27,000 and ordered to pay £35,000 costs and a victim surcharge of £170 at Bristol Crown Court on 30 September 2022.
Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Leo Diez said: “This incident could have been avoided by identifying and implementing effective control measures and safe working practices. Falls from height remain one of the most common causes of work-related injury and fatalities and the risks associated with working at height are well known.”
In his victim personal statement, the injured worker said: “The effect of the accident on my personal and work life has been huge and has had a lasting effect.”
Source – HSE
