A Hull-based waste management firm has been ordered to pay over 18,000 in fines and costs after an incident at its former Hessle Dock site saw an employee maimed for life.
Beverley Magistrates Court heard how Transwaste Recycling & Aggregates employee and ex-serviceman Ray Wright, 34, had been severely injured in the incident that took place at the companys Hessle Dock site in April 2009.
Transwaste had recently moved the majority of its operations to Melton in East Yorkshire prior to the incident, leaving only a baler and an operator at the Hessle Dock site.
And, the court heard how employee and former serviceman Ray Wright, 34, had been working alone on the site when he tripped on a scaffold tube in front of the baling machine and put his arm out to break his fall.
However, his arm went into the baling chamber and was severed between his wrist and elbow.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), prosecuting in the case, set out how Mr Wright had struggled to get help in the wake of the incident.
In shock and badly injured, Mr Wright attempted to phone for help but dropped his phone. He ran to get help from a neighbouring company and managed to flag down a van driver. He was taken to hospital, however, surgery to reattach the limb was unsuccessful and he now has a prosthetic limb.
Guard
The HSE told the court that the original protective guard for the baling machine had been damaged and replaced with a makeshift one. As the replacement was not designed for the machine, it allowed access to the baling ram when the machine was operating.
Transwaste pleaded guilty to breaches of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and was fined 12,000 and ordered to pay 6,408 in costs.
Regulation 11(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations places an obligation on businesses to ensure effective measures are taken to ensure access to dangerous parts of machinery is prevented.
Investigation
HSE inspector Chris Chambers, who investigated the incident, said: This was a devastating injury and is one that will have a life-long impact on Mr Wright.
But equally shocking is that it could so easily have been avoided had the company made sure the dangerous moving parts of this machine were properly guarded, by the device supplied by the machine not by some totally unsuitable alternative.
Mr Chambers added that the HSE investigation had revealed that a health and safety consultancy business had been used by Transwaste several months before the incident. However, it had failed to identify the makeshift barrier.
The HSE stressed that companies must use consultants endorsed by the Occupational Safety and Health Consultants Register, which was set up in 2011 to help identify suitably-qualified consultants based on regions.
After the hearing, Mr Wright, who has since returned to work for Transwaste in a different role, said: The injuries I have suffered at work have had a serious impact on my life and I can no longer do a lot of the things I used to take for granted.
I am determined to carry on with my life as best I can, in the circumstances, and am still working at Transwaste in a different job although every day is still a challenge.
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