Teenage worker hurt in fall from forklift
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Food firm fined £7,500 as HSE describes lifting people on pallets on forklifts as ‘utterly unacceptable’
By Patric Cunnane
LEICESTER MAGISTRATES’ Court has ined a food company £7,500 after a teenage employee was injured while unloading a shipping container attached to an LGV. The employee was off work for several weeks as a result of the injuries.
Simton Food Products, in Merry Lees, was also ordered to pay costs of £1,380 following the successful prosecution by the Health & Safety Executive.
The 18-year-old worker, who asked not to be identiied, was lifted on a pallet on a forklift truck to climb onto a stack of pallets by the container’s doors.
From there he entered the container and dragged the barrels inside onto the pallet held at height by the forklift.
The court was told that while stepping from one pallet to another, he fell approximately 2m, resulting in severe bruising to his abdomen and sprains to his shoulder and wrist. He spent several weeks off work. The HSE prosecuted the company’s owner, Jaisukh Chandarana of Kirby Muxloe, for the accident, which happened in January 2011.
He pleaded guilty to breaching the Work at Height Regulations 2005.
“Had a safe system of unloading been used, this incident would not have happened,” said HSE inspector Alison Cook after the hearing.
“Lifting people up on pallets on a forklift is utterly unacceptable because of the potential consequences of a fall. It was pure luck that a young man was not more seriously injured.” She added: “Since the incident, Mr Chandarana has contracted out unloading to a irm with a level loading dock to eliminate the risk of a fall.
“It is a pity someone had to be hurt for this to be chosen.”
Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 states: “Every employer shall ensure that work at height is properly planned, appropriately supervised and carried out in a manner which is, so far as is reasonably practicable, safe.” n
All too common
Injuries involving slips, trips and falls are the most common accidents in transport workplaces but are nearly always avoidable if the correct safety procedures are followed. www.hse.gov.uk/falls
Applications and decisions
EASTERN AND SOUTH-EASTERN AREAS
Biffa Waste Services
BIFFA WASTE Services wants to increase the number of vehicles it operates out of its Coalville, Leicestershire site.
Its current authorisation allows six LGVs and eight trailers and it wants to boost this to eight vehicles and 14 trailers.
The waste management company recently announced it had helped Birds Eye cut the amount of waste it sends to landill by more than a ifth.
This year it is introducing a collection service for the frozen food manufacturer’s waste cooking oil, which will be processed into bio-diesel to power 40 Biffa collection vehicles.
Gefco Transport
Automotive and healthcare logistics operator Gefco Transport, which celebrated 30 years in the UK industry last year, has been granted permission to run 15 vehicles and 15 trailers out of a new operating centre in Corby.
In January it was named European Logistics Company 2012 by the Institute of Transport Management.
The company has contracts with car manufacturers, importers, dealer networks and leasers and it says it now operates one of the youngest leets in the country.
Gefco also plans to relaunch its Dartford depot as a lagship site later this year.
Serco
International service company Serco has applied to operate 54 lorries out of a new centre in Old Wolverton, Milton Keynes. If it is granted permission, it will be the single largest vehicle authorisation at any of the company’s 12 operating centres.
Listrel
Regulatory action, including disqualiication, might be taken against Essex road haulier Listrel after the trafic commissioner requested its appearance at an Eastbourne public inquiry on 2 April. The trafic area ofice maintains that there has been a failure of the business to fulil undertakings and the ofice has concerns over the business’s inan cial standing.
McFen Plant
East London plant hire irm McFen Plant has been told that it must appear at an Eastbourne public inquiry on 2 April where regulatory action might be taken against its licence authorising it to operate 10 vehicles and three trailers.
FORTHCOMING PUBLIC INQUIRIES Eastern and SouthEastern Traffic Areas Cambridge
• BML Utility Contractors will appear at a PI on 2 April where its application for an O-licence will be decided.
• Page Tipping will appear before the TC on 5 April when disciplinary action will be considered as well as consideration of the transport manager’s repute.
• George Killoughery will appear at a PI on 17 April to discuss three counts of disciplinary action and its transport manager’s repute.
• Telent Technology Services, will appear at a PI on 25 April to discuss possible disciplinary action, and consider its transport manager’s repute.
Eastbourne
• Leadsham Trading Co will appear at a PI on 13 April where three counts of disciplinary action and its transport manager’s repute will be discussed, as well as a variation to its existing licence.
• The South-Eastern TC will consider an application for a new restricted licence for Rileys Scaffolding Contractors, Bognor Regis, on 3 April.