![PP Construction Safety logo and link to home page [1]](http://www.ppconstructionsafety.com/wp-content/themes/ppcs960/images/ppcslogo.jpg)
SHORT TERM ROOF INSPECTION WORK ENDS IN FALL
Occupier of premises prosecuted after workman falls whilst investigating leak
Raicam Clutch Ltd has been prosecuted for putting staff at risk when working at height.
An employee was instructed to investigate a leak on a flat roof at the company’s premises on 30 July 2009. Whilst walking across the roof he caught his foot in a trailing cable and fell some 4m to the ground below. He sustained five broken vertebrae and whiplash to his neck. It was four months before he could return to work.
Leamington Spa Magistrates’ Court heard the roof had no guard rails and nothing to hold onto. There was also no fall arrest protection below the roof such as a birdcage scaffold, netting or soft landing bags to protect him from the fall.
Second workman at risk investigating fall
Raicam Clutch Ltd pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 (as amended) and was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay £4,952 costs.
HSE Inspector Mark Austin said:
“It is fortunate this incident did not end in a fatality. But as if this was not enough the employer sent a second person onto this section of the roof, under the same conditions, to investigate the initial incident.
This was an entirely foreseeable incident which could have been avoided if Raicam Clutch Ltd had implemented safety precautions accepted within the industry as normal working practices.
Roofing work requires careful planning and assessment of the risks involved. In this case, an employee was working without any protection to prevent him falling which is completely unacceptable.
Falls from height are the biggest cause of workplace deaths and it’s crucial that employers make sure work is properly planned, appropriately supervised and that sufficient measures are put in place to protect staff from the risks. Clear guidance on working at height is available from HSE.”
Latest Construction Health and Safety News
HSE CONSTRUCTION DUST CONTROL ‘BLITZ’ STARTS
Regulator inspections will check health taken as seriously as safety
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 20th September 2018FLOOR CONSTRUCTION SYSTEM OF WORK UNSAFE
Welder fell 3m from mezzanine area through purlin openings
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 20th September 2018WORKER SUFFERS FATAL BURNS IN OXYGEN RICH AREA
Sparks from angle grinder ignited clothing of workman in confined space
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 19th September 2018RIBA PUBLISH DRAFT POST GRENFELL FIRE SAFETY PLAN
Architects institute consults on ‘golden thread of fire safety information’
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 19th September 2018MAJOR UK CONTRACTORS HIT BY MAJOR FINES
Firms ordered to pay over £3m after foot trapped in rotating ‘screw’
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 19th September 2018HSE ENFORCEMENT WEEKLY UPDATE 19th SEPT 2018
Prosecutions and enforcement notices register latest version
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 19th September 2018DRIVER DIED TRAPPED BETWEEN TRAILER AND VEHICLE
Firm fined £1.5 million over failure to assess coupling operations
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 14th September 2018ACTUAL SYSTEM OF WORK WAS OPPOSITE OF RAMS
Workman fell 4m through fragile asbestos roof sheet
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 13th September 2018CDM PRINCIPAL DESIGNER FUNCTION MISUNDERSTOOD?
Consultants claim CDM 2015 design risk management has ‘gone backwards’
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 8th September 2018RISK ASSESSED PRECAUTIONS NOT IMPLEMENTED
Action not paperwork essential to prevent fall during lifting operation
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 7th September 2018CROSSRAIL PUBLISH BEST PRACTICE H&S GUIDES
Sharing major project best practice can leave a lasting legacy
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 5th September 2018SCHOOL STAFF LACKED ASBESTOS AWARENESS TRAINING
Council fined £200k over asbestos flue and gasket rope failures
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 5th September 2018INCIDENT: MEWP OVERTURN IN CITY CENTRE
Images show aftermath of mobile elevating platform collapse
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 5th September 2018SAFETY ALERT: DEFECTIVE SCAFFOLD COUPLER
National Access and Scaffolding Confederation issues warning
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 31st August 2018DEMOLISHING INTERNAL WALL REVEALED ASBESTOS
Firm lacked survey and asbestos management plan for premises
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 31st August 2018NEW HEALTH AND SAFETY TEST FOR ARCHITECTS
RIBA raise the bar for members on design risk management and ‘life safety’
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 31st August 2018POWER BUSINESSES FAILED ON LIFTING OPERATION
Panel fell on workman during turbine maintenance project
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 31st August 2018MAJOR INFRASTRUCTURE FIRM COMMITS TO ZERO HARM
Behaviours to deliver zero lost time injury incident rate by 2021
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 31st August 2018MANAGING TOWER CRANE FALLING OBJECT RISK
CPA issues new technical information note
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 31st August 2018POST EXPLOSION ASBESTOS WORK WAS UNSAFE
Asbestos cement panels removed and cut with power tools
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 31st August 2018FALL THROUGH UNFLOORED FACTORY ROOF SPACE
Non-routine tasks require assessment and clear risk controls
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 31st August 2018SEVENTH LONDON CYCLIST DEATH DURING 2018
Building products vehicle involved in death of Queens doctor
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 17th August 2018MAJOR CONTRACTOR FAILED TO SUPERVISE LIFT
Errors whilst lifting pre-cast concrete blocks fined £600,000
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 14th August 2018FIRM FINED £400,000 OVER VIBRATING TOOLS RISK
Hand-held orbital sanders, rivet guns, grinders and drills caused harm
Read the rest of this article »
Posted on 14th August 2018OVERHEAD POWER AND EARTHING OF SCAFFOLDS
NASC combines updates advice on scaffold electrical risks
Posted on 9th August 2018
