Worker left in a coma for two months after fall

Date:

9 February 2011

Release No:

NE/017/10

A Sheffield construction company has today been fined after a worker suffered serious injuries while working on the refurbishment of a Teesside store.

MacDonald Joinery & Construction Ltd was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) following the incident at the former Rosebys store, at Teesside Retail Park, Stockton on 2 September 2008.

Teesside Magistrates' Court heard that Carl Major, 31, of Retford, Nottinghamshire, had been stripping out fixtures and fittings when he was hit on the head by a falling lighting pelmet. He was knocked off the step ladder he was using and fell around three metres onto a concrete floor.

Mr Major suffered serious head injuries and was in a coma for two months. He later developed epilepsy and still requires medical treatment. He has been unable to return to work.

The HSE investigation revealed that prior to him beginning refurbishment work at the store, MacDonald Joinery & Construction had failed to provide Mr Major with the necessary information and instruction to enable him to carry out his work safely.

Although the company had produced a risk assessment and a system of work for working at height in the store, neither were sufficient as they failed to look at how the lighting pelmet and the wall to which it was attached were constructed. As a result of this the company failed to identify the dangers its workers would face.

MacDonald Joinery & Construction Ltd, of Westthorpe Fields Business Park, Westthorpe Fields Road, Sheffield, pleaded guilty of breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The company was fined £15,000 and ordered to pay costs of £6228.75 at Teesside Magistrates' Court today (9 Feb 2011)

After the case, HSE Principal Inspector Rob Hirst, said:

"Mr Major has suffered long term injuries as a result of this serious incident, yet it could have easily been prevented if suitable and sufficient safety measures had been provided.

"Reducing the number of deaths and injuries from falls from height is a key priority of the work of the HSE. This incident illustrates how important it is for construction companies to effectively manage health and safety at all levels within the business."

Mr Major, who is married with two children, added:

"It may sound dramatic, but this has really changed my life. I now have epilepsy so I can't drive anymore and I've been told I may never be able to go back to work in my trade as a plasterer.

"I've also lost my sense of smell so can't enjoy cooking as I did. The whole thing has had a real impact on my family - the stress and the financial worries have made things worse."

Falls from height are the biggest cause of fatal and major injuries in the construction and maintenance industry. During the three year period up to the end of 2010, there were 132 fatalities in relation to falls from height - 85 in the construction industry alone, two of which were in the North East. For further information about working at height log onto the website at www.hse.gov.uk/falls

HSE Inspectors will be visiting sites in the region as part of a month long inspection initiative focussing on refurbishment, repair and maintenance activities.

Notes to editors

1. At an appeal against sentence hearing at Teesside Crown Court on 3-5 October 2011, MacDonald Joinery & Construction Ltd had its original fine of £15,000 reduced to £1,000.
2. The Health and Safety Executive is Britain's national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims to reduce work-related death, injury and ill health. It does so through research, information and advice; promoting training; new or revised regulations and codes of practice; and working with local authority partners by inspection, investigation and enforcement. http://www.hse.gov.uk
3. Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act etc 1974 states that "it shall be the duty of every employer to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all his employees".
4. The court also ordered MacDonald Joinery & Construction Ltd to pay a separate £15 victim surcharge, the proceeds of which will be spent on services for victims and witnesses.
5. For further information about working at height, please see www.hse.gov.uk/falls

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