An inquest has heard about the circumstances surrounding the death of a 38-year-old who died after being crushed between a scissor lift and a dump truck, which was being driven by his brother.
Philip Griffiths was fatality injured in the incident on 2 October 2014, at the site of a new car park at Heathrow Terminal 2.
The inquest heard how he and his brother, Robert Paul Griffiths, were attempting to tow away the broken down scissor lift that was blocking a service road.
Reports state that Robert was reversing the dumper truck when Philip became trapped between the vehicle and a scissor lift.
Robert said he had tried to apply the brakes but his foot became trapped under the brake pedal.
His brother, Philip, was pronounced dead at the scene, with a post-mortem later giving the cause of death as a crush injury to the chest.
Police inspections identified a number of faults with the scissor lift but no “contributory” defects to either vehicle which may have led to the collision, concluding that it was a “tragic collision”. No criminal charges were made.
The jury recorded a conclusion of accidental death.
Mr Griffiths’ death was the second fatality in 12 months at Laing O’Rourke projects, following the death of Richard Laco on the site of the Francis Crick Institute in November 2013.
