The Health and Safety Executive have sued two firms for a crash of a 79-metre high tower crane on a city apartment block in Liverpool. This caused the driver, Iain Gillham 55, from Woolton, to fall out of the cab through a hole in the roof and down six floors. The incident occurred when the counterweights of the crane broke free and crashed down into the partially erected building.

This incident resulted in Mr Gillham being paralysed from the waist down. He suffered severe injuries that included; haemorrhaging of the brain, skull fracture, a broken right shoulder, broken ribs, left side crushing and spinal injuries causing his partial body and leg paralysis.

The crane, used in the building of a multi-million hotel project and seven apartment blocks at Kings Dock Mill on Tabley Street, overturned on 6 July 2009. Eight counterweights on the crane with a weight of 56 tonnes broke, crashing through the roof of the building and down six floors, wrecking the Chandlers Wharf apartments where it landed.

Fortunately, there were no injuries to the residents of the apartment blocks. The building however, was damaged to such an extent, that occupants had to leave and were unable to return to their homes for two years, due to the necessary reconstruction work.

The HSE prosecuted the sites main contractor, Bowmer and Kirkland Ltd. and the engineering company of Bingham Davis Ltd, following an investigation of the incident. At the Liverpool Crown Court, it was found that the crane was unable to cope with the strain.

While erecting the foundation, the two firms agreed to remove essential reinforcement bars from the concrete piles and replace them with inadequate five steel rods in order for the cranes feet to rest securely. This action led to the overloading of the foundation, causing the crane’s collapse.

Bowmer and Kirkland Ltd and Bingham Davis Ltd were found to be guilty of breaching the security act and were fined accordingly for failure of safety precautions to protect the workers and residents.

Bowmer and Kirkland Ltd of Church Street, Heage, Derbyshire, were fined £280,000 with a decision for prosecution costs not made.

Bingham Davis Ltd, formerly of Temple Street, Liverpool were fined a nominal fee of £1,000 as the company went into voluntary liquidation and ceased trading after the collapse of the crane.

A South Kensington church council has been prosecuted after a joiner was paralysed after falling from a balcony at the St Paul’s Church in Onslow Square.

The self-employed joiner fell from the balcony to the ground, which was at a height of three metres, after a poorly constructed safety railing collapsed under his weight. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) took the Holy Trinity Brompton parish council to court, as a result of the worker’s injuries on the 3rd of March 2010.

The 25th of April 2012 saw the Westminster Magistrates’ Court hear of the incident where a high barrier was created on the balcony to guard against people falling from that height. The work being carried out was to install an adjustable floor and hand rail so the balcony could be used for seminars. But after the work had begun in early 2009, the barrier was removed due to complaints about the guard restricting the mobility of materials.

To compensate, a low rail was installed. But this rail was just above a metre high so when the floor was raised the barrier stood at just over 20cm above floor level. A higher barrier was supposed to have been erected whilst working on the raised floor.

The court heard that when the accident occurred the temporary barrier hadn’t been put in place. So when the joiner was fixing a board over a hole he leaned against the barrier. The barrier didn’t have enough support so he fell through the barrier and landed on the floor.

The worker, who did not wish to be identified, sustained a broken back and shoulder, in addition to three broken ribs. His injuries have left him paralysed below the waist.

After the defence counsel for the church partook in a strong mitigation case, the Parochial Church Council, which is associated with the Ecclesiastical Parish of the Holy Trinity Brompton, with St Paul Onslow Square (HTB), pleaded guilty to breaking the Health and Safety at Work Act of 1974. The court handed down fines of £5,000 and an additional £4,457.60 to cover any legal costs.

A company has been fined for breaching health and safety regulations after an investigation was carried out to find who was at fault when a factory worker had his fingers cut off.

A rotating saw was the culprit when the factory worker, aged 27, had three fingers cut off of his left hand. The cuts were so deep that they went down to his second knuckle. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) carried out an investigation of Frank Hill Ltd of Scot Lane, Blackrod Industrial Estate.

The firm was taken to Manchester Crown Court after the HSE found that the company had failed to install a guard on the saw and that the worker was not even trained to use that piece of equipment.

The employee, who did not wish to have his name revealed, was apparently holding on to some wood at the pallet manufacturing company whilst another employee was going to cut it. However, the Manchester Crown Court heard that his hand became entangled in the blade and the fingers were severed when the incident occurred on the 22nd of December 2010.

When the Bolton-based company was investigated by an HSE inspector, Prohibition Notices were instantly produced so that the offending saw and a similar saw couldn’t be used until proper protective guards had been implemented on the machines.

The company, which was formerly known by the name of IPC Services, was found guilty by the courts of breaching the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations of 1998 on two counts; this was after a trial on the 16th of December 2012 at the Trafford Magistrates Court.

However, the original company was placed into the liquidation process on the 28th of July 2011 so the fine was decided at a sentencing hearing on the 30th of April 2012 at the Manchester Crown Court as amounting to £2 with no legal costs to be paid.

Investigating HSE inspector, Sarah Taylor, commented about the case after the hearing that the company had been fined because they blatantly ignored the regulations by allowing a young worker to use a saw when he wasn’t trained to do so, as well as without implementing any available protective guards.

Brookvale Homes SW (Ltd) contracted CJL Construction Ltd for installing external drainage to new terrace properties at Bartlett Elms, Langport, Somerset.

In an incident on 10 September 2010, a forklift truck struck Paul Daniels, 50, a subcontracted ground worker on the site. He suffered severe injuries to his leg of fractured bones and an injured foot.

When the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigated, they found that Brookvale Homes (SW) Ltd had failed to provide designated walkways or pavements. There were also, no areas restricted to vehicular traffic.

Because of the storage and skips location being in one of the main pedestrian areas, traffic and pedestrians had difficulty in negotiating driving and walking.

Yeovil Magistrates Court heard on 3 May 2012 that as Mr Daniels was inspecting drainpipes opposite the site offices, the front right stabiliser of a forklift truck struck him, as it headed his way. The wheel crushed the bones in his leg and partially amputated his foot. An obstruction in the road caused the driver to try to negotiate a narrower space than usual.

Brookvale Homes (SW) of Alvington, Yeovil, was found guilty of breaching safety regulations, and fined £10,000 and ordered to pay costs of £7,575.40.

]]> http://www.personalinjuryclaim.co.uk/workers-leg-bones-shattered-by-fork-lift-truck/feed/ 0 http://www.personalinjuryclaim.co.uk/paralysed-cyclist-claims-compensation/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=paralysed-cyclist-claims-compensation http://www.personalinjuryclaim.co.uk/paralysed-cyclist-claims-compensation/#comments Thu, 10 May 2012 19:17:59 +0000 Denise http://www.personalinjuryclaim.co.uk/?p=2420 Car Driver Sued for over £300,000

Dan Black aged 24, of Llanvair Discoed was cycling to work at Tesco in Chepstow, when he was involved in a collision with a car. He sustained severe injuries and is now claiming compensation, in excess of £300,000 from the driver of the vehicle, Mr Patrick Barrett, of Buttington Road, Sedbury.

The accident occurred on 2 December, 2009, on the A48 road. It is alleged that Mr. Black sustained his injuries through the negligent driving and actions of Mr. Barrett, who in turn, alleges contributory negligence on the part of Mr. Black.

Current legislation means that motorists are only prosecuted in instances where it can be proved that drugs have impaired their driving. But David Cameron is set make drug driving a criminal offence following his meeting with the Groves family whose daughter Lillian was killed by a driver under the influence of cannabis when she was just 14 years old.

The proposed Communications, Crime and Court Bill will change the law to make drug driving a stand-alone offence that will carry a potential penalty of a 12 months driving ban for offenders and the maximum punishment will be a six month jail sentence.

Mr Cameron met with Lillian’s family in 2011 and has subsequently revealed that he was incredibly moved by the meeting and that it has helped to focus his mind regarding the issue of drug driving.

He has said that he is in full agreement with Lillian’s family when they say that it is wrong that a schoolgirl can lose her life before it is discovered that laws are not in place to enable the prosecution of drivers who are under the influence of drugs.

The same needs to be done for drivers who take drugs as drink driving legislation has done for motorists who choose to drive whilst drunk.

The Prime Minister has said that Lillian’s family have conducted a brave and proud campaign for which they should be congratulated and which began when the driver who mowed her down served only a 4 month jail sentence.

The new laws will see the introduction of roadside drugalysers, to allow police officers to establish whether a driver is under the influence of drugs.

Guildford Magistrates Court heard on 1 May, how an illegal gas fitter endangered the lives at a property in Surrey. The Defendant, Mr Michael Gill, aged 66, installed a new gas boiler and a flue, at a house in Kingsmead Park, Elstead, on 5 March 2008. He created an unsafe situation, by leaving the installation in a dangerous condition!

Mr Gill had falsely claimed to be a registered gas engineer, with approval from the designated authority to carry out gas related work. He operated with false CORGI accreditation and had returned to the property on four occasions, between 5 March 2009 and 22 June 2011. This was for performing annual servicing on the boiler. During this period, he should have enrolled with the Gas Safe Register, which was the replacement watchdog for gas safety from 1 April 2009.

Following an inspection of the boiler by the Gas Safety Register, it revealed a number of issues in the installation. These varied in classification between “immediately dangerous”, “at risk” and others determined as not adhering “to current standards”.

Mr Gill of Beech Hanger Road, Grayshott, entered a plea of guilty to multiple breaches of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 for his work and for operating illegally. The Court imposed a fine of £600 and ordered him to pay £385 in costs.

Paul Gorman from Leeds has been permanently paralysed after an operation for shoulder and neck pain went wrong.
He claims that during surgery one of the guide wires pierced his spinal cord and damaged it so badly that he is not now able to move either of his legs.

Local press has reported that Mr. Gorman, who will need nursing care and to be looked after for the remainder of his life, is claiming more than £300K from Leeds Hospital Trust.

Documents which have been lodged at the Courts of Justice, and which have been seen by the Yorkshire Evening Post state that Mr. Gorman’s claiming for clinical negligence.

He states that despite the trust having a duty of care to all their patients, they decided to carry out an inappropriate operation which carried a high risk of failure without even considering other options.

Mr. Gorman used to be a civil servant but now requires assistance with ordinary jobs such as gardening, DIY, shopping and home maintenance, tasks which he was able to complete on his own before the operation.

He is no longer able to control his legs, abdomen or chest; he also has no strength in his hands, has back pain and suffers from sleep disturbance due to severe spasms.

The documents submitted to the court state that Mr. Gorman’s neck pain developed in March 2010 and a subsequent scan revealed that one of the discs in his spine had compressed. Following the scan Simon Thomson, a neurologist advised Mr. Gorman had the operation which was carried out in December of the same year.

Mr. Gorman hasn’t walked since the operation.

A spokesperson for the hospital has commented that the trust accepts that certain elements of Mr. Gorman’s care fell below an acceptable standard and reiterated their apology.

A Narrative Verdict was delivered at Llanelli Town Hall regarding Mr. David Anthony Jones, who died on a psychiatric ward where he was receiving treatment. He was discovered hanging in his room, in the Bryn Gofal Ward of the Prince Phillip Hospital in Llanelli on 20 September 2010. The Inquest proceedings revealed that the death occurred within one hour of the “Suicide Watch” being relaxed.

The Jury was also told by experts, that doors to the patient’s en suite bathrooms on the mental health wards should have been removed, to lessen the risk of self harm. This observation was added to by evidence stating that the regular 15 minutes observation structure had been stopped on the morning Mr. Jones died, by a junior doctor, allegedly inexperienced in psychiatry.

An independent medical witness described his concerns regarding the availability of ligature points in the bedrooms. In addition, information relative to the mental state of Mr. Jones was “incomplete” on his admission to the hospital on 17 September 2010. This particularly referred to plans he had regarding suicide and the manner it was passed to the ward.

During the presentation of the verdict, it was stated that a bag strap belonging to the deceased, should have been taken from Mr. Jones by nursing staff, when he was admitted to the ward!

St Helens Magistrates Court were told on 27 April, 2012, how a 43 year old worker from Thatto Heath sustained serious injuries when his hand was pulled into a machine. The accident occurred on the 25 June 2011, at the premises of his employers on the Bold Industrial Estate, Neills Road.

The worker was able to gain access to the machine, used to produce thin steel strips, while it was in operation. As he was taping one end of steel strip to prevent erratic movement, his hand was pulled into the working mechanism.

Following investigation by the authorities, Hi Tech Steel Services Ltd were prosecuted and entered a plea of guilty to two health and safety offences; that it failed to ensure the safety of its employees, and failed to carry out a suitable assessment of the risks to workers. A fine was imposed on the company of £5,000, with an order to pay £1,797 in prosecution costs.