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Builder fined after joist collapse leads to serious injury  

Swansea based builder, Arthur David Fletcher, has been ordered to pay over £16k in fines and prosecution costs after an employee fell when a joist collapsed during construction of a temporary floor. The workman fell over 2m and sustained serious injuries. Fletcher was the Principal Contractor and manager of the site for a new supermarket and accommodation. 

HSE inspector Anne-Marie Orrells said: ” Mr Skippon is still experiencing the effects of his injuries more than two years later. Despite this incident, an unannounced inspection by HSE just over a month later showed that there was still a failure to manage risks from working at height, including an absence of guard rails on scaffolding, poor access from the building to external scaffolding and unprotected openings which were large enough for workers to fall through.”

Comment: The Standing Committee on Structural Safety (SCOSS) has produced clear guidance on supporting floor joists during construction.

This article was posted on 27th January 2009 in ALL LATEST NEWS, PROSECUTIONS, collapse structure.
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