Quarry firm fined £30K for health and safety breach
July 29th 14:02 Health and Safety
The importance of having effective facilities management health and safety systems in place has once again been highlighted after a quarrying firm was handed a major fine for a recent accident.
The case in question involves the East Yorkshire-based Humberside Aggregates and Excavations Ltd, which has pleaded guilty to three separate breaches of the Quarries Regulations of 1999.
Inspectors working for the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) charged that the firm was responsible for an accident which saw a worker injured after the 30-tonne wheel loader he was operating overturned and slid 16-feet down a sand pile.
Beverley Magistrates Court heard that there were no safety railings in place, with the firm acknowledging the health and safety breach and accepting the court's £30,000 fine.
Commenting, HSE inspector Richard Noble pointed to the importance of effective health and safety systems within the sector, noting that workplace transportation accidents are the biggest killers in the industry.
The HSE's own guidance for firms operating in the quarrying sector also singles out manual handling, falls from height and slips and trips as leading causes of accidents.
