HSE issues working at height warning
December 23rd 09:22 Health and Safety
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has issued a warning to employees who work at height in the construction industry.
Mike Ford, inspector at the HSE, noted that it is "a major cause of death and injury at work in Great Britain" after one employer was fined £3,500 for failing to prevent such an incident.
Ian Griffiths of Oldbury was ordered to pay the fine after Paul Leggett, also of Oldbury, fell 26 feet through a roof while working on industrial units in Birmingham, breaking several bones.
Improved facilities management may have helped prevent the incident and Mr Ford noted: "The precautions taken to ensure … safety fell far short of what is acceptable."
He added that Mr Leggett was "lucky" to survive the fall, which saw him land on a concrete floor.
K-Line Logistics was recently fined £15,000 after one of its personnel died following a seven-metre fall.
The employee had been working to repair some lights at one of the firm's sites.
