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Worker left with hole through shin after impaling accident at concrete works
A.C.P (Concrete) Ltd, a producer of pre-stressed concrete panels, has been fined £15k after a steel cable grip failed and the cable shot through the leg of workman.
The fire and rescue service cut the cable to release him and he was taken to hospital with the end of the cable embedded though his shin.
The steel cables were threaded through the concrete moulds and tensioned 2,000 lbs tension. On 19th March 2009 a cable grip failed releasing the 200 ft cable. The cable passed through his lower right leg leaving him impaled on the 9mm steel cable.
Lack of grip inspection and safe system of work
HSE investigation no system for inspecting and maintaining the grips and that an average of eight grips were failing each week at the premises.
In addition, there was no a safe system for re-threading the steel cables and fixing new grips when they failed on tensioned cables.
HSE Inspector Mike Griffiths, said:
“This terrifying incident should have been prevented. The lack of any inspection or maintenance of the grips meant that problems with them were only detected when a grip failed. That could sometimes result in a cable being released with 2000 lbs tension.
“The fact that the grips had to fail before they were replaced meant that there were significantly more failures under tension, and the chances of a potentially serious injury were increased.
“The company should have ensured that the task of re-threading the cables in a partially tensioned bed was properly assessed and that the significant risks to its employees were properly controlled by a safe system of work.”
The court heard that Mr Graham, who is a keen weight trainer, was significantly immobilized for 6 weeks after the accident and he still suffers pain and weakness in his right leg.