Three men died as a result of a Falcon tower crane falling over on a Seddon new-build care home development on Dunwoody Way in Crewe on 21st June 2017.
David Newall, aged 36, and Rhys Barker, 18, were dead by the time the emergency services arrived. David Webb, 43, died from his injuries in hospital five weeks later.
Following what the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) described as “a long and complex investigation”, initial court proceedings finally begin this week.
Norfolk-based Falcon Tower Crane Services Limited is accused of breaching Section 2(1) and Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. A plea and trial preparation hearing is due to take place at Chester Crown Court on Friday 6th October 2023.
Falcon said that it would contest the charges.
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It responded: “Falcon Tower Cranes Services is a safety conscious and well-run company. It has a culture driven by safety. Its directors and management put safety at the heart of all its operations. The company, its management and staff have been deeply affected by it and the company has done all it can to provide support to the families of those who have suffered, and our thoughts remain with them.
“The company has throughout this long investigation co-operated fully with all authorities and has been determined to understand fully the causes of this tragic accident and to learn all safety lessons to be sure that safety remains paramount.
“We are disappointed now that the HSE has chosen to prosecute the company for what it considered to be a health and safety breach arising out of this incident. The company takes this matter very seriously and will be vigorously contesting the charge it faces.”
The Crewe crane collapse came just a year after Falcon Crane Hire Ltd was fined £750,000 for safety breaches that led to a tower crane falling over in Battersea in 2006 and killing two men. The Battersea crane collapse took 10 years to reach its legal conclusion. [See our previous report here.]
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