Director ignored machine-guarding warnings prior to blender fatality
Mr Palmer had previously served as a soldier for 13 years in the Falklands, Bosnia, and Kuwait. After the hearing, his brother Ted said: “Paul was just a happy-go-lucky chap. Not a lot fazed him; he just took everything in his stride. It just seems wrong that he survived over a decade in the army and then was killed by a machine in a factory.
“I can’t understand how manufacturing companies can become complacent over health and safety in this day and age. I just hope highlighting Paul’s death will stop it happening to someone else.”
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Director ignored machine-guarding warnings prior to blender fatality
A former soldier was killed while cleaning the inside of an inadequately guarded industrial mixing machine at a factory in Lancashire.
Safety & Health Practitioner
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Why is the director not in jail?
The HSE speak about safety interlocks, but the machine should have been isolated, with a permit for confined space.
Until sentences fit the crime, then these accidents will continue to happen. We also have this government trying to dilute safety rules for businesses, so if it is successful, don’t be surprised when accidents increase
Until we start issuing custodial sentances for these offences, this kind of inadequate H&S management will continue.
Stuart Reich should have gone to jail for this, not just been issued with a piffling little fine tantamount to a slap on the wrist.
Truly shockingly small fine for the life of an employee. As others have said, he should have gone to jail.
To hear that these sort of accidents are still happening in todays industries is an absolute travesty. What concerns me is there seems to be no mention of Confined Space which would have surely highlighted that a permit was required, & highlights another shortfall in the awarenes of the deceased through lack of appropriate training.
I agree with the statement – That in this age and time with so much of Safety tools available there are still so much of fatalities. The company should make sure that when using machinery that they should take precautions by using a checklist prior to that machine been started.the company should also have a stringent policy,whereby if any employee cleaning any machinery must report to the supervisors office informing that supervisor of his intentions for example (cleaning) have a LOCK OUT POLICY
Why has it taken 5 years to bring a prosecution in this case?