HSE | A construction company has been fined after a kitchen fitter was crushed to death by a pack of concrete blocks at a site in the Cotswolds.

Martin Dunford, 33, was ‘very much loved’ by his family who say they miss him ‘every day’ since the incident on 23 January 2020. Martin was killed after being pinned against the side of a lorry loader as two stacks of concrete blocks fell onto him.

Martin had been working at Ebrington Rise, near Chipping Campden – a development of 16 three, four and five bedroomed houses being built by Piper Homes Construction Limited.

The HSE’s investigation found that Martin had walked around a lorry loader to talk to a driver about how long he would be on site, as he needed access to one of the properties being built. A stack of concrete blocks which had been placed on top of another stack of blocks, which was also supported by a wooden pallet, toppled over onto him, pinning him against the side of the lorry. He sustained severe internal and head injuries and died on site.

Piper Homes Construction Limited, who were the principal contractor on the site, had failed to ensure that a suitable, level storage area was provided for the safe offloading of construction materials. The company had also failed to ensure that wooden pallets in a suitable condition were used for the storage of construction materials and that persons were excluded from delivery areas.

Piper Homes Construction Limited, which is currently in liquidation, of Lace Market Square, Nottingham, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 13(1) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015. The company was fined £300,000 and ordered to pay £5,236 in costs.

— Accurate at time of publication | April 2025

United States Environmental Protection Agency | The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced a settlement for alleged violations of the Clean Air Act with Nalco Production LLC and Nalco Co. LLC.

The companies manufacture polymer blend chemicals at their facility at 6216 W. 66th Place in Chicago, Illinois. The companies will pay $401,300 in penalties.

EPA alleges the companies violated requirements to prevent chemical accidents by failing to develop and implement hazard assessments, provide process safety information, secure operating procedures, or conduct periodic inspections on equipment.

EPA also alleges the companies violated requirements to develop incident investigation and risk management plans.

— Accurate at time of publication | April 2025

WorkSafe Victoria | A major construction company will spend more than a million dollars to improve health and safety outcomes after an unloading incident left a young man with life-threatening injuries.

Dromana Magistrates’ Court heard J Hutchinson Builders Pty Ltd, trading as Hutchinson Builders, had entered into an enforceable undertaking while facing a single charge of failing to ensure a workplace under its management and control was safe and without risks to health.

WorkSafe may reinstate the charges if the undertaking is contravened or withdrawn.

In August 2022, a truck driver employed by another company was delivering three large electrical switchboards to a Hutchinson construction site at Rosebud Plaza, assisted by his 21-year-old son.

As the driver’s son stood on the truck’s tray removing straps, a forklift struck the unsecured load, causing him and a switchboard to fall 1.6 metres to the ground.

The court heard the 770-kilogramme switchboard landed on his head and torso, causing life threatening crush injuries including skull, facial, and multiple other fractures, brain damage, and facial nerve palsy. He was airlifted to hospital in a critical condition and has since partially recovered, with ongoing physical and emotional impacts.

— Accurate at time of publication | April 2025

Registered Gas Engineer | A Scottish local authority has been fined more than £13,000 after a carbon monoxide leak at a primary school in Bishopbriggs.

Glasgow Sheriff Court heard that a number of staff and pupils at Balmuildy Primary School reported feeling ill in February 2020, experiencing symptoms including headaches and nausea.

Throughout the day, several pupils were sent home and staff had to take medication to relieve their symptoms. The following day, testing for a gas leak revealed high levels of carbon monoxide present in areas of the school. The building was immediately evacuated.

An investigation by the HSE in conjunction with Gas Safe Register investigators found that one of the two auxiliary gas boilers at the site was leaking carbon monoxide into the boiler room and the school buildings. The investigation found this was due to a lack of maintenance.

If the faults with the boiler had been found before the incident through the required routine maintenance, it would have been classed as Immediately Dangerous. This would have necessitated the disconnection of the gas boiler until it was repaired.

East Dunbartonshire Council of Strathkelvin Place, Kirkintilloch, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 35 of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998. The council was fined £13,333 plus a victim surcharge of £999.98.

— Accurate at time of publication | April 2025

WorkSafe Victoria | An industrial plastics manufacturer has been fined $75,000 after a worker suffered life-threatening crush injuries when his head was caught in machinery.

In December 2024, Class Plastics (Aust) Pty Ltd was fined $40,000 without conviction in the Sunshine Magistrates’ Court after pleading guilty to a single charge of failing to maintain plant that was safe and without risks to health.

Following an appeal, the Melbourne County Court set aside the original sentence, instead convicting the company and imposing a $75,000 fine. The company was also ordered to pay $4,000 in costs.

In April 2022, a supervisor at the company’s Truganina factory was attempting to rectify an issue with a plastic blow moulding machine when his head was caught between a moving bar and the machine’s frame.

The man suffered a traumatic brain injury, fractured skull and intracranial bleeding which required immediate surgery.

— Accurate at time of publication | April 2025

Canadian Occupational Safety | A ski resort in British Columbia has been fined $78,369.61 following a serious workplace incident in which an employee was severely injured.

While the worker was installing signage in a parking lot using a utility vehicle, the employee accidentally reversed the vehicle over the edge of an unguarded slope at the ski resort, resulting in a rollover crash that caused serious injuries.

Penalties, the agency added, are based on the employer’s payroll, the seriousness of the infraction, and their compliance history.

— Accurate at time of publication | April 2025

HSE | A paddleboard business owner has been jailed for 10 years and six months for gross negligence manslaughter following the deaths of four people in 2021.

Nerys Lloyd, 39, from Aberavon, who was the owner and sole director of Salty Dog Co Ltd, was charged with the gross negligence manslaughter of Paul O’Dwyer, 42, Andrea Powell, 41, Morgan Rogers, 24, and Nicola Wheatley, 40, following their tragic deaths following the incident in Haverfordwest Town Weir on 30 October 2021.

She admitted all four charges, along with one count under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act.

At her sentencing, the court heard how on 30 October 2021, Lloyd with the assistance of Paul O’Dwyer, planned a trip organised through Lloyd’s business.

However, there had been heavy flooding, and severe weather warnings were in place, which were not heeded by Lloyd. The river was running fast, and the weir was in an extremely hazardous condition. Lloyd did not check the weir or provide a safety briefing to the participants nor inform them of the presence of the weir. Despite this, Lloyd facilitated the paddleboarders entering the water and she led the group along the river.

As the group approached the weir, apart from Lloyd, all the participants were pulled over the top into its base and became trapped before being ejected from the weir. Four of the participants survived.

Instructor Mr O’Dwyer, who initially exited the river safely, re-entered the water in an attempt to rescue the others, but was immediately dragged over the top. The four victims died as a result of drowning/immersion.

— Accurate at time of publication | April 2025

HSE | A road haulage company in Nuneaton has been fined £90,000 after a metal heat exchanger fell from its lorry killing a cyclist.

A Heavy Goods Vehicle (HGV), operated by JW Morley Transport Ltd, was driving down College Street, Nuneaton on 18 June 2021 carrying four heat exchangers weighing over 10,000kg, when as it went round a bend, the load shifted in the vehicle causing one of the straps securing the load to snap.

This resulted in one of the heat exchangers falling from the lorry, killing 70-year-old Christopher Baker, who was cycling alongside the vehicle.

— Accurate at time of publication | April 2025

Fire Industry Authority | A hospitality business owner has been fined over £12,000 after serious fire safety breaches were discovered during inspections in 2023.

Simon Floyd, the owner of The Tree Inn located in Stratton, Bude, has been fined a total of £12,775 after being found guilty of multiple fire safety breaches. The Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service discovered these breaches during inspections of the guest accommodations at his establishment in May and September of 2023.

During their inspections, officials noted several serious violations, including inadequate fire detectors and smoke alarms, and a blocked escape route impeded by an air conditioning unit. Additionally, the premises lacked properly installed fire doors where they were crucially needed.

— Accurate at time of publication | April 2025

HSE | Cambridgeshire County Council has been fined £6 million after pleading guilty to serious safety failings on its Guided Busway that led to three deaths and multiple injuries over a ten-year period.

The prosecution follows a long and complex HSE investigation, where incidents continued to happen despite regular enforcement action from the regulator.

A guided busway is purpose-built track exclusively for buses to bypass traffic congestion. Three people died after being hit by buses on the network. Jennifer Taylor, 81, died in darkness at an unlit crossing in November 2015. Three years later Steve Moir, 50, was killed after his bike struck a kerb, causing him to fall into the path of an oncoming bus. Kathleen Pitts, 52, lost her life in October 2021. Two young people also suffered serious injuries in separate incidents.

Despite the first fatality in 2015, the council didn’t conduct its first risk assessment until August 2016 – five years after the Guided Busway first opened.

The HSE investigation also found that basic safety measures were missing across the busway including lighting of some crossing points, appropriate speed limits for buses, sufficient measures to separate pedestrians and other users including cyclists from passing buses, and adequate signage warning of dangers.

In a statement, Mrs Taylor’s family: “Jenny was deeply loved by all of us, and we dearly miss her. As a family we would like to thank the HSE for their tireless efforts in bringing this case to court. We hope that the lessons learned will lead to sustained safety improvements and help avoid tragedy, injury and suffering in the future.”

Mr Moir, an active cyclist who coached local youth football and served as a school governor, was thrown into the path of a bus travelling at 56mph after losing control on the narrow maintenance path running alongside the busway.

Mr Moir’s family said: “The loss of Steve has left us devastated and there is now a big hole in our lives that cannot be filled. Steve was a loving, caring family man with a great sense of humour and a zest for life who brought laughter and joy to our lives every day and his presence is deeply missed by us all.”

Following his death, the council reduced the speed limit to 30mph in the area in question, but this failed to prevent the subsequent fatal incident involving Kathleen Pitts in October 2021. Just three weeks after Ms Pitts’ death, a 16-year-old cyclist suffered life-changing injuries at a designated crossing point.

After the hearing, HSE principal inspector Graham Tompkins said: “This is a truly tragic case where three people lost their lives and others suffered serious injuries in incidents that were completely preventable.

“Had Cambridgeshire County Council properly assessed and managed the risks on the Guided Busway from the outset, these deaths simply would not have happened. Even after the first fatality in 2015, the council failed to take adequate action to protect the public. They chose to appeal our enforcement action instead of acting on our concerns and incidents continued to happen.

“Simple measures could have saved lives and life changing injuries. Instead, the council operated this major transport system for almost a decade without many of the basic safety measures we see in every village, town and city being in place.

“The families of those who died have shown remarkable courage throughout this process, and I hope this prosecution brings some measure of closure for them, though nothing can make up for the loss of their loved ones.

“Our risk assessment guidance may be more commonly used for workplaces such as factories and construction sites, but the same principles apply for busy spaces such as major transport infrastructure. The possible risks to people and the movement of passengers, pedestrians and others needs to be thought through.”

Cambridgeshire County Council of New Shire Hall, Emery Crescent, Enterprise Campus, Alconbury Weald, Huntingdon pleaded guilty to two offences under section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The charges related to failing to protect the public both at crossing points and while travelling alongside the busway. The council was ordered to pay a fine of £6 million plus costs.

Investigation findings

The HSE investigation identified safety management failings within Cambridgeshire County Council for the operation of the Busway for a period of just over 10 years.

These failures related to two distinct risks; members of the public seeking to cross the Busway at designated crossing points and risks to members of the public when they were merely in its vicinity, or seeking to travel alongside it. Despite interventions by the HSE which included two Improvement Notices, Cambridgeshire County Council failed to adequately manage safety on the Busway until late 2021.

The Busway opened in 2011, but it was not until August 2016 after one death and several serious injuries on the Busway, that the first risk assessment was undertaken.

This risk assessment did not adequately assess the risk to members of the public crossing, or being alongside, the Busway. For example, in locations where the Busway was more crowded and where the adjacent access pathway was narrow, congestion was more likely. This would lead to people being jostled or unknowingly deliberately moving into the path of a bus, as in some sections there were no separators such as grass verges, physical barriers or fences to keep them to the access pathway.

Furthermore, Cambridgeshire County Council did not consider other measures to reduce the risk to members of the public, such as speed limits and the provision of lighting and suitable signage.

— Accurate at time of publication | April 2025

Construction Enquirer | UK Power Networks has been fined £40,000 for carrying out unguarded work on excavations in west London.

The prosecution was bought by Kensington and Chelsea Council after officials visited sites in the area.

Council officers visited Adam and Eve Mews and Queen’s Gate Mews in May 2024 to inspect works being carried out by UK Power Networks.

On both occasions UK Power Networks Operatives had failed to fully enclose the works area with a continuous barrier system to keep members of the public safe from harm.

The company pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to charges under the New Roads and Street Works Act and was subsequently sentenced at Westminster Magistrates Court.

— Accurate at time of publication | April 2025

Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development | Following a guilty plea in the Provincial Offences Court in Sarnia, John Harris Concrete Ltd. has been fined $85,000 over an October 2022 incident which resulted in a worker being fatally injured while cutting down a tree at a construction project.

The Court heard how one of the company’s five workers was clearing brush and felling trees from the area around a drainage ditch when they were fatally injured by a tree.

An investigation by the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development found that while the worker had been trained to operate a chainsaw safely, they were not trained on tree felling.

— Accurate at time of publication | April 2025