Engineer lost half his blood in fall

Maintenance at height

On 5 September 2016 an engineer was testing a sprinkler system at a site in Hemel Hempstead. In the course of his investigations he climbed onto an internal roof using an extension ladder. The ladder slipped and he fell almost three metres into the gap between the internal roof and the external wall. Once he was safely extracted, he received treatment for a head wound, fractured vertebrae and soft tissue damage. The severity of his injuries and the time it took for the rescue caused significant blood loss.

Not us!

The HSE investigation found that the arrangements for working on the internal roof were inadequate and it laid the blame at the feet of the principal contractor for the site, Modus Workspace Limited (M).

In court M denied breaching s.3 (1)Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 which places a duty on employers to protect those not in their employment from harm. The company was found guilty and fined £1.1 million. It was also ordered to pay costs of £68,116.

Working safely

Under the Work at Height Regulations 2005 (WAHR) ladders and stepladders can be used for access and to work from in very limited circumstances when “the use of more suitable work equipment is not justified because of the low risk” and for “short duration of work” . The HSE says that short duration means working on a ladder for no more than 30 minutes at a time. You are also permitted to work from a ladder when fixed structures mean that a ladder is the only option.

Note. There’s a simple rule in the WAHR that any work with a ladder must be justified through risk assessment.

Who was responsible?

When specialist contractors come onto your site, such as sprinkler engineers, it’s tempting to assume that they know how to work safely at height and leave them to it. However, this is a mistake. As the organisation in control you’ll share the blame for any accident which takes place as a result of obvious errors in judgement, as shown in this case.

Tip 1. Your contractor management arrangements should include a procedure for obtaining a risk assessment and method statement for any work at height, in advance of the work.

Tip 2. When you check the contractor’s safety paperwork, look for evidence that precautions are to be put in place to prevent falls. If that’s not possible, ensure there are measures to effectively protect anyone who might fall, e.g. via fall arrest equipment.

Tip 3. When the contractor’s workers arrive on site, check with them how they plan to carry out their work and that they have the equipment with them. If this doesn’t match the risk assessment and method statement, stop the work until you’re sure it can be done safely.

Tip 4. Put it in writing that it’s a contractual requirement to comply with your site safety rules and the contractor’s own risk assessment and method statement.