Solar panel installer breaks back in fall

Grant Prior 10 years ago
Share

A solar panel contractor and its technical director have been fined after an employee broke his back when he fell six metres through the roof light of a barn in Northamptonshire.

A 20 year-old man from Woolston, near Warrington, has been unable to work and has suffered constant pain and depression since the incident at Norton Grounds, Daventry on 28 November 2011.

Northampton Crown Court heard that he fell while installing solar panels for Alternative Energy Installations Limited, which has since gone into liquidation.

Soft floor material in the barn, used for horse training, helped to break his fall, but he was still hospitalised for four weeks with a serious back injury.

The HSE prosecuted the firm and its technical director for failing to control the risk of falling through fragile roof materials.

Crawling boards and safety netting were subsequently used to continue the job after HSE served a Prohibition Notice ordering urgent safety improvements in the aftermath of the fall.

Alternative Energy Installations Limited, registered with Hodgsons Accountants of Park Road, Timperley, Cheshire, was fined £30,000 and ordered to pay £27,000 in costs after being found guilty of a safety breach.

Ian Black, of Denbigh, Wales, was fined £7,300 and ordered to pay £6,700 in costs after pleading guilty to the same charge at an earlier magistrates’ court appearance.

After the hearing, HSE inspector Peter Snelgrove said: “This fall could have been fatal and was entirely and easily preventable.

“As it is, the incident has dramatically affected a young man, starting out in life, and he has not worked again since.

“The director was aware that the roof lights were fragile, but failed to put any measures in place to prevent falls, despite another worker asking if they would be wearing safety harnesses, at which Mr Black laughed.

“The fact that they were able to overcome the problem so simply afterwards, by using crawling boards and safety netting, shows how easy it was to prevent the incident.”

 

Latest news

Police ban mobile cranes from roads over Easter

Plant hire bosses livid as forces across the country extend abnormal load embargoes
15 hours ago

Director jailed for exposing workers to asbestos

Ten tonnes of asbestos insulating board stripped out by unqualified workers
19 hours ago

Site labour rates start rising again

Industry's biggest payroll firm says "it feels like things could be turning round"
24 hours ago

Council finds extra £33m for Buckinghamshire link road

South East Aylesbury Link Road costs soar by nearly 30% to £147m
23 hours ago

Quartet win £490m North West & Central railway works deal

Skanska, Kier, Octavius Infrastructure and Story Contracting bag major projects deal
1 day ago

Unite Students plans first major mixed-use scheme

Developer's first mixed BTR and PBSA project to be built in Edinburgh
2 days ago

Galliford Try names new finance director

Rentokil's Kris Hampson joins contractor to replace Andrew Duxbury
1 day ago

Council boss hits out at bat threat to £274m road job

Natural England could scupper scheme due to be built by Ferrovial
1 day ago

Hydrogen-fuelled diggers to be allowed onto highways

Government to raise barrier to widespread use of hydrogen fuelled plant in construction
2 days ago

Plans in for £118m Government hub in Darlington

Work pencilled to start later this year on new home for 1,450 civil servants
2 days ago

New contractor highlights Henry Construction jobs on website

New firm lists jobs by failed contractor to show its experience
2 days ago

Contractors line up for £2.6bn Anglian Water AMP8 deal

Eight big names land places on pioneering @one Alliance
3 days ago

McAleer & Rushe bags first major later living project

Work to start this month on 167-flat Royal Tunbridge Wells project
2 days ago

Kier starts first all-electric prison houseblock job in Kent

Next-generation fully electric T60 prison houseblock to be built at HMP Elmley
2 days ago

Keepmoat sees better times ahead in housing market

Profits dip in 2023 despite construction of record number of new homes
2 days ago

Vistry signs partnership deals for 1,900 mixed tenure homes

West Sussex former airfield and Newmarket sites to break ground
3 days ago

Turnover at Wates tops £2bn for first time

Construction division exceeds £1bn turnover as average contract value hits record high of £48.3m
3 days ago

L&G looks to sell Cala Homes in exit from house building

Insurance giant reported to be preparing to offload 3,000 homes-a-year developer
4 days ago

Multiplex profit almost trebles as margin hits 5.5%

Revenue jumps 20% to £675m as big London scheme complete
3 days ago

TopHat puts plans to open huge Corby factory on hold

Advanced manufacturing facility was due to employ 1,000 people
3 days ago

Laing O’Rourke lands Calderdale hospital job

Enabling works to start by the end of this year at West Yorkshire site
3 days ago

Go-ahead for £475m Sunderland film and TV studios

Work to start this year on first phase Corwn Work studios
3 days ago

Willmott Dixon set for £20m Stockport Community Hub

Planning decision expected in June on Marple leisure and health clinic project
3 days ago

Police hunt for blundering dumper truck thief

Raider drove into a fence before getting stuck on a bank
3 days ago

Beattie Passive files administration notice

Passivhaus pioneer has been in business for more than ten years
4 days ago

McAlpine set for £50m space and tech centre

Northumbria Uni sign pre-con deal for new satellite research hub
4 days ago

VolkerFitzpatrick seals £34m Kent road viaduct

Work to start next year on Sturry Link Road near Canterbury
4 days ago

Eight win £600m Scottish civil engineering framework

Balfour, Farrans, Graham and Morgan Sindall win major works lot
4 days ago

Site engineer crushed to death by excavator

22-year-old victim died just months after graduating from university
6 days ago

NG Bailey fined £135,000 after hospital site death

Worker died after striking overhead beam while navigating a mobile elevating work platform
6 days ago

Contractor services