Amey fined after worker “set on fire”
Gloucester Crown Court has heard how a 61-year-old worker suffered life changing injuries after coming into contact with a live underground cable.
The man, who has not been named, was working at the site on Eastgate Street on 29 May 2015. While trying to replace a traffic light pole he came into contact with a live underground cable which immediately gave him an electric shock and set him on fire. The man, who was an employee of another company asked by Amey to carry out the work, received burns to his to hands, arms, stomach, face, legs and chest.
This case should act as a reminder to local authorities and their contractors of the risks of working underground and the danger of severe electric shocks. – HSE
Failings
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that:
- Although this was the first time this particular group of individuals worked on an Amey project, Amey did not provide adequate information on the location of underground services in the area.
- Amey’s supervision of the work was not adequate
- Amey had not properly managed the risks from the underground services.
Sentencing
Amey LG Limited, of Edmund Halley Road, Oxford, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 25 (4) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015. The company was fined £600,000 and ordered to pay costs of £15,498.
After the hearing HSE Principal Inspector Helena Tinton said: “This man suffered life changing injuries as a result of this incident. He’s not been able to return to work, he still can’t use his hands properly and has been left both physically and mentally scarred by what happened. Had Amey given adequate information to the team working on site, and had Amey ensured the work was properly planned and supervised, this incident could have been avoided.
“This case should act as a reminder to local authorities and their contractors of the risks of working underground and the danger of severe electric shocks.”
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Amey fined after worker “set on fire”
Gloucester Crown Court has heard how a 61-year-old worker suffered life changing injuries after coming into contact with a live underground cable.
Lauren Applebey
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Although a summary of the case it is a shame so little salient detail is available. For example, was the area traced by using a CAT scanner? What was the electrical service that caused the injury? Etc.
No doubt written protocols were already in place as far as Amey are conserned.I suspect that this has happened due to an individual rather than the company as a whole but as per the law the company will ultimately pay the price for an individuals negligence……the system works?