A Pembroke Dock, Wales construction company and its director have been prosecuted after a labourer suffered serious injuries on a construction site, according to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
Karl Kraus, 31, from Pembroke Dock was employed by Preseli Construction & Maintenance Ltd, and was working on the build of a large domestic property at Incline Way, Saundersfoot. (WCxKit)
Haverfordwest Magistrates Court heard that on March 25, 2010, Kraus was instructed to remove a concrete block that had been placed across a doorway. As he proceeded to throw the block, he fell backwards on to the balcony and then seven metres to the ground below.
An HSE investigation found that the three-story house was being built without scaffold or any form of fall prevention.
Preseli Construction & Maintenance Ltd. and its director, Christopher Newell, had failed to ensure that work at height was properly planned and supervised. They also failed to ensure that it was carried out in a safe manner.
Kraus spent six days in Morriston Hospital in Swansea where he underwent surgery to pin the bone in his left heel and was in a plaster cast for approximately ten months. Still in constant pain and unable to walk on uneven ground without risking a fall, he is due to undergo further surgery to prevent any further damage to his foot, but his career in the construction industry is over.
Preseli Construction & Maintenance Ltd. of Waterloo Industrial Estate, Eastern Avenue, Pembroke Dock pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. It was fined $7,671.6 and ordered to pay costs of $1,519.37. (WCxKit)
Newell of The Glebe, Narberth Road, Tenby also pleaded guilty to breaching Section 37(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. He was fined $ 2,557, with costs of $1,519.37. Newell is also disqualified from acting as a company director, managing or in any way controlling a company for at least two years.
Author Robert Elliott, executive vice president, Amaxx Risk 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. He is a contributing author of the #1 selling book on cost containment, Manage Your Workers Compensation: Reduce Costs 20-50% www.WCManual.com. Visit at: www.LowerWC.com for more information. Contact: [email protected].
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