Linden Foods, Ltd., was fined a total of £25,000 ($41,000) plus £1,200 ($2,000) in costs at Laganside Crown Court, after pleading guilty to breaches of health and safety legislation at an earlier hearing at Omagh Crown Court. The case was brought by the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSENI).
According to information from the HSENI, the case arose out of a Feb. 25, 2010, incident in a store at a Linden Foods meat processing plant at Granville Industrial Estate Dungannon.(WCxKit)
Lucas Da Costa, a 33-year-old worker, suffered severe head injuries when stacked packing crates collapsed on top of him. Da Costa was lifting the stacked crates using an electric pallet truck which had no overhead protection against falling objects.(WCxKit)
After the hearing, Anne Cassidy, an inspector with the HSENI’S major investigation team, noted, “Companies must use lift trucks which have overhead protection where there is a possibility of items falling. Care must be taken when stacking goods to ensure the stacks are stable and suitably spaced so as to prevent accidents such as this one. A risk assessment must be carried out to identify these hazards and the most suitable means of controlling the risks.”
Author Robert Elliott, executive vice president, Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. See www.LowerWC.com for more information. Contact: [email protected].
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