Two roofers have received suspended jail sentences and have been ordered to do 280 hours of community service after an office worker was injured when a 37kg roll of roofing felt plunged four metres through the ceiling of her office.
Derby magistrates heard on 7 November that Kathleen Philipson had been sitting at her desk at offices in Ripley, Derbyshire, on 22 September 2010, when the metre-long roll fell through an unguarded roof-light and the ceiling of the office, hitting her on the shoulder.
She received injuries to her head, shoulder and left arm that required hospital treatment and two weeks off work.
The court was told that building contractor Jason Lunt and self-employed roofer Gregory Wright, both 41, had been contracted to re-felt the flat roof of the building where Mrs Philipson worked.
The re-felting materials were delivered a day early, and Lunt allowed the repair work to start on the roof without ensuring that an adequate system of work was in place and that the roof-lights were properly protected.
The incident happened when Wright lifted one of three rolls of felt that had been positioned on the flat roof next to the handrail in an N-shape. This destabilised the stack and led to the middle roll falling through the unprotected roof-light.
The court heard that the roof contained 22 sets of roof-lights, which had been due to be boarded over before the roof was re-felted. However, only one had been covered, or protected to prevent people, or materials falling through them.
Lee Greatorex, the HSE inspector who investigated and prosecuted the case in court, told SHP that the roofing roll “fell like a missile”. He said the office workers below heard a rumbling, “like a train was coming”.
“Mrs Philipson was extremely fortunate she was not more seriously injured, or even killed, given the heaviness of the object,” the inspector said. “This was a frightening experience for her, but it could have been easily prevented had greater care been taken.”
“Mr Lunt should have ensured that roof-lights were adequately protected before repair work began. As a roofer, Mr Wright should have been aware the roof-lights needed to be protected, unless he had evidence they were capable of withstanding a substantial load.”
Sentencing Lunt and Wright, District Judge Joanne Alderson said: “You two together were jointly responsible for this extremely serious incident. . . Despite knowing the building was occupied by people working there, you made no effort to cover the roof-lights. This was not a task that required technical experience – the man on the street could have done it. . . Your actions showed complete disregard for the safety of others.”
No formal mitigation was offered by the men’s solicitor, except that the two men were very sorry for what had happened. They pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity.
Lunt, of Bloxwich, West Midlands, pleaded guilty to breaching s3(1) of the HSWA 1974 by failing to ensure the safety of members of the public. Wright, also of Bloxwich, pleaded guilty to breaching s3(2) of the same Act by failing, as a self-employed person, to protect non-employees.
Both men were handed down an 18-week jail sentence, suspended for 12 months on the condition that they undertake 280 hours of community service. They were also both ordered to pay £2114 in full costs.
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Again no mention of the client, the injured lady’s employer. Did they have no part to play in this?