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September 13, 2013

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Builder fractures neck in fall

 

Kline Williams fell through a skylight after no safety precautions were taken on siteA sub-contractor had to be airlifted to hospital after falling through a roof at a factory in Bagworth.

Kline Williams, 45, from Coalville, had been hired by self-employed James Beeston to carry out minor building works and repairs.

Leicester Magistrates’ Court heard that Mr. Williams was replacing roof lights that comprised a single strip of Perspex, when he required advice from Mr. Beeston to fix a broken jig.

As he moved to one side to let Mr. Beeston through, he fell through a fragile roof light and fell three metres to the concrete floor below.

As well as his injuries to his arm and neck, Mr. Wilkins also suffered soft tissue injuries to his kidneys and hip. He has still not returned to work but hopes to do so within the next two months.

Following the investigation, it was concluded that the Mr. Beeston had failed to provide any suitable safety measures to prevent a fall through the fragile roof material, such as nets.

James Beeston, also from Coalville, pleaded guilty to breaching regulation 9(2)(a) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. He was fined £3,000 and ordered to pay costs of £397.

Speaking after the hearing on 12 September, HSE Inspector Tony Mitchell emphasized the need for a cleared approach to working on fragile roofs.

“Mr. Wilkins is lucky to be alive as work at height on fragile roofs is a significant cause of fatal incidents.

“Companies or individuals, such as Mr. Beeston, who don’t provide a safe system of work or fail to comply with the required standard can expect to be brought before the courts.”

Mr. Beeston cooperated fully with the investigation and has no previous prosecutions to his name.

Approaches to managing the risks associated Musculoskeletal disorders

In this episode of the Safety & Health Podcast, we hear from Matt Birtles, Principal Ergonomics Consultant at HSE’s Science and Research Centre, about the different approaches to managing the risks associated with Musculoskeletal disorders.

Matt, an ergonomics and human factors expert, shares his thoughts on why MSDs are important, the various prevalent rates across the UK, what you can do within your own organisation and the Risk Management process surrounding MSD’s.

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