05.06.2003

UK scaffolding firm fined £75,000

William Hare, one of the UK’s largest steel erection companies, has been fined a total of £75,000, following a fatal incident when two workers fell from height, resulting in the death of one. The Health & Safety Executive’s (HSE) prosecution followed the accident, which occurred on April 2, 1998, during the construction of an extension to the Imperial War Museum at Lambeth Road, London.

William Hare employee, Brian Knights, fell from the steelwork of the new extension and was killed, while work colleague Richard Bartram escaped serious injury in the same incident. The two workers had been standing on a wooden staging board that was resting on two horizontal steel beams at a height of 13 metres above the ground. They were retrieving a ladder that was footed on the staging board, giving access to the top of a column, where steel channels had been bolted into position a few days earlier. The board became unbalanced and tipped both men off.

William Hare pleaded guilty to a breach of Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, for failing to ensure the safety of its employees at the City of London Magistrates Court, on Wednesday 12 March and subsequently fined a total of £75,000.

HSE inspector Alec Ferguson said: “The method statement for the scaffolding work being undertaken at the Imperial war Museum was not sufficiently detailed to cover the erection of the steel channels, which led to an improvised system being developed on site.

“This dreadful accident has highlighted the need for the most detailed planning and preparation for all high-risk activities such as steel erection. This accident could have been avoided if the company had specified a safe system of work undertaken with suitable supervision.”