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Tue March 19 2024

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Crane fatality takes five and a half years to reach court

15 Oct 21 A scaffolding company has been ordered to pay more than £200,000 after the electrocution of an employee.

ASL Access Scaffold employee Martin Tilby was killed back in May 2016 when the lorry loader crane he was operating struck an overhead powerline while he was unloading materials in a field at Cowbridge, South Glamorgan.

An investigation by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) found that no risk assessment had been carried out in the field where the incident happened, and no control measures were put in place to prevent contact with the overhead powerlines.

ASL Access Scaffold Limited of Bridgend Industrial Estate, Bridgend was found guilty of breaching Sections 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and LOLER Regulation 8 (1). This week the company was fined £160,000 and ordered to pay costs of £45,000.

ASL Access Scaffold ceased trading and folded soon after the fatal incident, which happened more than five years ago now. The liquidator has been waiting to complete ASL’s dissolution pending the outcome of this prosecution.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Damian Corbett said: “This death was easily preventable, and the risk should have been identified.  Employers should make sure they properly assess and apply effective control measures to minimise the risk from striking overhead powerlines. This death would have been preventable had an effective system for managing unloading materials been in place.”

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