Roofing boss jailed after worker dies in five metre fall

Grant Prior 2 years ago
Share

A building boss has been jailed after a worker fell from the roof of a commercial property in North London and died a week later.

Patrick McCarthy (trading as All Care Home Improvements) was given a 14-month custodial sentence after the death of Andrei-Ionel Hutanu in 2019.

No scaffolding or other measures had been put in place to prevent falls from the roof.

Harrow Crown Court heard how 33-year-old Hutanu and another man were working at the rear of  commercial premises in Neasden on 19 August 2019.

While his co-worker had been instructed to remove building materials from a flat roof, Hutanu had been instructed to carry out repair work on a tiled pitched roof. He was working on it from a roofing ladder when he fell approximately five metres onto a concrete alleyway below.

He fractured his neck and sustained other serious head injuries in the fall and despite being taken by air ambulance to St Marys Hospital in Paddington, he died a week later.

An HSE investigation found McCarthy had failed to take any steps to prevent falls from height by failing to install scaffolding around the perimeter of the building or flat roof where both men were working.

McCarthy (trading as All Care Home Improvements) of Ealing, pleaded guilty to safety breaches and received a 14 -month custodial sentence.

After the hearing, HSE Inspector Philip Jordan said: “This tragic incident could have been easily avoided. Assessing and planning work at height is essential to ensuring that suitable and sufficient measures are in place to prevent falls from height.

“The custodial sentence imposed on Mr McCarthy should underline to everyone in the construction industry that the courts, and HSE, take a failure to follow the regulations extremely seriously. HSE will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action against individuals or companies that fall below the required standards.”

Latest news

Breakthrough for HS2 as first Birmingham tunnel section dug

Balfour Beatty VINCI completes 3.5-mile TBM drive in 652 days drive
3 days ago

HS2 Curzon Street station redesign approved as timber roof axed

Change to meet stricter fire safety rules and cut maintenance costs
3 days ago

Care home fire trial collapses

Prosecution withdrawn against four firms including Morgan Sindall Property Services
4 days ago

Leicester rebids £22m station revamp after failed tender race

Council opts for ECI route after receiving one bid for project
3 days ago

Kier wins £58m East Coast College rebuild job in Great Yarmouth

Work to start this summer for 1,300-student college
3 days ago

R G Carter wins £28m hospital car park job in King’s Lynn

MSCP paves way for £1.5bn Queen Elizabeth Hospital rebuild in 2027
3 days ago

London to relax green belt building rules

Sadiq Khan shifts position on planning
3 days ago

Willmott Dixon wins Great Yarmouth waterfront deal

North Quay 10.5 acres mixed-use scheme to advance
4 days ago

SIG chief quits to join Travis Perkins

Gavin Slark to leave by the end of this year
3 days ago

Eight take key spots on £250m Prosper framework

Housing and public building upkeep deal for North East awarded
4 days ago

Early call-out for £150m Ebbsfleet Garden City infrastructure

Bidders day to set out plan for Ebbsfleet Central commercial scheme
5 days ago

McLaren storms April contracts league with flurry of wins

Cardiff Bay Arena job headlines a series of big contract wins
4 days ago

Balfour Beatty lifts cash forecast after strong first quarter

Contractor set to hit £1bn average monthly net cash in 2025
4 days ago

Goldman Sachs-owned Adler & Allan buys 180-strong civils outfit

West Country's Glanville Environmental gets new owner
4 days ago

Caddick lands first contract for £200m Skelmersdale revamp

Developer gets green light for masterplan
4 days ago

Van Elle sells HGV fleet to haulage firm

WS Specialist Logistics pays £2.9m to take on fleet and drivers
4 days ago

Buyers more bullish about prospects for year ahead

Residential "resilient" but commercial work a weak spot
5 days ago

Council backs first Brutalist car park-to-flats scheme

Newcastle-under-Lyme multi-storey car park to be reborn as pioneering homes scheme
5 days ago

Hinkley Point C hits peak build with 26,000 jobs

3,000 more workers to join as fit-out work ramps up
5 days ago

Over 40 firms win Wessex Water M&E minor works deal

Broad sweep of specialists picked for AMP8 programme
5 days ago

Spencer lands Scottish bridge hat-trick

Steelwork, gantries and bearing upgrades on Kessock, Forth and Tay crossings
6 days ago

Winners revealed for £1.5bn decarbonisation deal

Fusion21 confirms places for 40 firms: Full list
5 days ago

Cladding firm fined £225,000 after fatal fall

Court hears how cherry picker didn't reach all parts of repair job
5 days ago

Completed buildings caught-up in Gateway 2 chaos

Developer distraught after dealing with Building Safety Regulator
6 days ago

Aviva submits plans for 34-storey City office tower

Subject to planning work to start in autumn 2027
6 days ago

Murphy takes 40% stake in Aussie civils contractor

Firm enters Australasian market with stake in Sydney-based contractor Abergeldie
6 days ago

Moat seeks firm for £420m repairs and maintenance deal

15-year deal to upkeep 20,000 south east homes
6 days ago

Lynch takes over hotel for Sizewell plant operators

Hire giant now in the hotel business to guarantee accommodation for workers
6 days ago

Subcontractors wanted across Scotland

Latest Constructionline event in Glasgow: Register now
6 days ago

Six guilty of £2m bribery over Devon housing site deals

Corrupt building bosses and E.ON project chief and QS sentenced
1 week ago

Contractor services