Plumber plunges from dodgy scaffold tower

Grant Prior 10 years ago
Share

A plumber suffered life-threatening injuries in a fall after scaffolding was removed early during refurbishment work at an outdoor activities centre near Gwynfe in Carmarthenshire.

The 64-year-old man from Llandovery, who has asked not to be named, was working on an accommodation block at the site when he fell three metres on 15 March this year.

He lost consciousness and suffered a bleed to his brain, a fracture to his cheek bone, bruised ribs and further damage to his existing back condition.

He now requires morphine for his back pain and has been unable to return to work.

The principal contractor overseeing the project, Evans Brothers Builders Ltd, was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) following an investigation into the incident.

Carmarthen Magistrates’ Court heard that the company had arranged for the scaffolding to be removed from the site before the injured worker had finished fitting new waste pipes to the outside of the building.

He was given a scaffolding tower to use as an alternative way of completing the job, which was found to have been in a dangerous condition.

It did not have all of the protective guardrails around the platform to prevent workers falling off the edge and he had to use an unsecured ladder leaning up against the tower to climb on and off it as there was no internal ladder access.

Evans Brothers Builders Ltd pleaded guilty to safety breaches and was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay £3,685 in prosecution costs.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE Inspector Anne Marie Orrells said: “The worker sustained life-threatening injuries in the fall and could easily have been killed. His injuries will affect him for the rest of his life.

“If Evans Brothers Builders had planned the project properly then it would have known it needed to keep the scaffolding for a few more days, or provide alternative equipment so that the waste pipes could be fitted safely.

“The scaffolding tower and unsecured ladder it provided was clearly not fit for use and the moment the worker attempted to climb it, his life was put in danger.”

Latest news

Former Inland Homes chief to invest £2.5m in cash raise

Cash-strapped developer hopes to raise £4.6m in share sale closing today
6 hours ago

Groundworks firm Conlon saves piling specialist

Work restarts on Abbey Pynford sites after acquisition
15 hours ago

BAM Farrans JV installs Great Yarmouth bridge leaves: Video

Watch civil engineering feat in action as 770 tonne bridge leaves lowered into place
15 hours ago

Gove invites Kingspan for talks on fire safety compensation

Insulation firm urged to pay for its part in cladding crisis after unveiling record profits
22 hours ago

Galliford Try and Midgard bag 350 homes deal at Brent Cross

Galliford Try will build 249 BtR flats and Midgard 107 flats for sale
22 hours ago

Sizewell C project gains key environmental permits

Waste permits allow client NNB Generation Company to move to site investigation and construction environmental approvals
21 hours ago

Cost of Robertson school contract soars to £100m

Construction to start next month after cost jumps from original £60m
22 hours ago

House building cost inflation eases as build out rates fall

Housing cost inflation expected to grow by 1.4% this quarter
21 hours ago

Modular builder ilke Homes hires Deliveroo chief to drive profit push

David Scott charged with making business profitable
22 hours ago

£500m Leeds South Bank scheme gets green light

Leeds City Council approves plan for 1,350 flats in mixed-use South Bank development
2 days ago

Galliford Try takes rebid £150m Carlisle Southern Link Road

Main construction works are due to start on 8km road in June
3 days ago

Arup takes stake in graphene-enhanced concrete venture

New concrete additive Concretene™ promises 30% savings in CO2 emissions
2 days ago

Winners revealed on £1.42bn materials framework

Thirteen builders merchants land places on huge procurement deal for social landlords
2 days ago

Travelodge eyes plans for another 300 hotels

Hotel giant writes to local councils offering partnership deals with a £3bn investment target
2 days ago

Balfour Beatty to invest £60m in pop-up EV chargers

New Urban Fox JV will roll out 35,000 charge points across the UK over the next decade.
3 days ago

Leading Channel Isles builder goes bust

Jersey-based construction firm Camerons placed in liquidation
2 days ago

HS2 Euston needs full design reset as costs set to double

Spending watchdog warns Euston stop-start delay will simply inflate already ballooning costs
3 days ago

Worker dies on major warehouse site in Stafford

Main contractor Glencar halts work while tragedy is investigated
3 days ago

Sellar switches London flats/hotel plan for 444 student rooms

Southwark's King’s Place scheme will comprise five buildings of up to 11 storeys
3 days ago

Bid race starts for Norfolk £30m Long Stratton Bypass

Council hopes to start work on 3.9km bypass in April 2024
3 days ago

GMI to build first warehouse at £200m Teesside business park

Work to start early next month on first shed at airport business park
3 days ago

Skanska Costain Strabag JV sets up own rebar plant

HS2 team now running on-site manufacturing facility to avoid supply chain issues
3 days ago

Bid rigging: Keltbray to appeal and so could Squibb

Both contractors "disappointed" with level of fines
6 days ago

Ten demolition firms fined £60m for bid rigging

Full details of fines with Erith and Keltbray hardest hit
7 days ago

Retail contractor J M Scully files administration notice

£23m turnover Dorset based contractor lodges court notice
6 days ago

Civils specialist M Lambe delivers record performance

Housing civils specialist seeks to diversify in face of challenging housing market
6 days ago

Willmott Dixon clinches £60m Oxford Brookes University job

Preparation work starts on two new buildings at Headington Hill campus
6 days ago

Ferns seals £50m+ Openreach network services deal

Five-year south west deal to provide civils, poling and complex manhole programme
6 days ago

20 firms win £4.5bn Southern construction framework

A dozen new firms secure spots on fifth generation public sector deal
7 days ago

Call grows for bolder 18m second staircase rule for flats

Architects, surveyors and builders professional trade bodies demand lower height threshold than proposed 30m
7 days ago

Contractor services