Plasterers fall from scissor lift at Westfield centre
A plastering contractor landed in court after two workers were seriously injured when a scissor lift overturned during construction of Derby’s Westfield shopping centre.
The workers, who have asked not to be named, fell around seven metres when a scissor lift they were using to transport plasterboards between floor levels tipped over in August 2007.
A 22-year-old from Dronfield, Derbyshire, suffered a fractured pelvis and cheekbone, broken nose and heavy bruising.
His 39-year-old colleague, from Woodhouse, Sheffield, fractured his skull, eye socket, elbow and thumb and also sustained heavy bruising. Both were hospitalised and had significant periods of time off work.
A Health and Safety Executive investigation found the men were using the wrong type of equipment to transport the plasterboards.
Clark & Fenn Skanska pleaded guity to breaching lifting regulations and was fined £5,000 by Derby magistrates today and ordered to pay full costs of £11,348
After the hearing inspector Kevin Wilson said: “This was a serious incident where the consequences could have been much worse. The platform was only half a metre away from a further drop of nearly six metres.
“The incident could have been prevented with appropriate planning and selection of equipment suitable for the task.
“Scissor lifts are not designed for use as material hoists. They are designed as a working platform for positioning operatives and their tools. In this case, the platform was heavily overloaded.”