Man Falls following Breach of Health and Safety
Health and safety is a serious matter. It is not something to be ignored by workers or employers. A Sheffield man understands more than many what ignored issues of safety and health can result in. This man fell three metres down a flight of stairs in his home, from the top to the bottom. The scary part is that this man fell in 2010 after a new staircase was installed, but the construction company doing the refurbishment left the stairs without the handrail.
The homeowner suffered from a broken spine, head injuries, and broken ribs. He was hospitalised for several months because of the necessary operations. The HSE examined the health and safety systems in place after the incident to determine why the handrail was not in place.
The HSE also made certain the construction firm underwent health and safety audits at other locations to see if they were in breach of other safety measures or if it was just this one incident. The man has made a 90% recovery, though he had to undergo a tracheotomy in order to speak again. After all this, the HSE determined that the construction company was at fault for safety breaches wherein £5,000 in fines and almost the same in costs needed to be paid. The company is lucky that the man who fell did not die as the incident could very well have led to fatality. Simple measures could have been in place to prevent any fall.
