Warehouse worker injury highlights risk of workplace accidents

A worker at a textile retailer was injured after falling from an unguarded platform onto the concrete floor at the company’s warehouse. The man suffered from a broken leg from the fall and then his ankle was crushed after a board fell onto it. He also received bad bruising to his face.
High risk of workplace accidents for tree surgeons unless precautions taken

The dangers of working as a tree surgeon are numerous. There have been more than 350 workplace accidents involving tree surgeons in the last 3 years. The key causes of these accidents are from chainsaws, falls from height and workers being struck by falling timber / trees. There are hazards at almost every stage of a tree surgeon’s work so it is essential that precautions are taken to ensure safety.
Electricians risk shock of accidents in the workplace

Electricians necessarily work with electricity, which can result in very serious injuries. Injuries caused by contact with electricity can include electric shock, electrical burns, loss of muscle control and thermal burns.
Road maintenance workers risk accident in the workplace

A road maintenance worker was killed on the M4, whilst crossing over to the central reservation to collect traffic cones. He was employed by a private company, hired to remove cones from the motorway after re-surfacing work had been completed.
Cactus causes workplace accident and nearly blinds worker

A maintenance worker in Milton Keynes was injured by a cactus in a shopping centre. His role included general maintenance work, including pruning plants. Whilst he was pruning a 30ft cactus, he was squirted in the right eye by sap.
Workplace accidents high in manufacturing industry and higher in recycling industry

The manufacturing industry can be dangerous and there is a high risk of workplace accidents, compared to some other industries. A recent example comes from a dairy company in Aberystwyth who were fined £3,250 and ordered to pay costs of £2,673 after a worker was hit by a forklift truck at the company’s factory.
Office workers risk accident in the workplace without proper precautions

The risks of working in an office may not be immediately apparent but there are various factors in the office environment that may cause an accident in the workplace.

Warehouse worker injury highlights risk of workplace accidents
Dec 02, 2010
High risk of workplace accidents for tree surgeons unless precautions taken
Dec 01, 2010
Electricians risk shock of accidents in the workplace
Dec 01, 2010
Road maintenance workers risk accident in the workplace
Dec 01, 2010
Cactus causes workplace accident and nearly blinds worker
Dec 01, 2010
Workplace accidents high in manufacturing industry and higher in recycling industry
Oct 26, 2010
Office workers risk accident in the workplace without proper precautions
Oct 26, 2010

Roofers narrowly avoid serious workplace accident

Published on Oct 14

A roofing company boss has been prosecuted after the owner and three employees were seen working on a roof without any safety equipment. They had no guard rail or scaffolding and nothing to prevent them plummeting to their deaths if they slipped or tripped. They were also seen throwing slates straight from the roof into a skip below which risked injuring passers-by. Luckily none of the roofers or any passers-by were injured but they very easily could have been.

Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Work at Height Regulations (2005) state that employers of workers who work at a height have an obligation to take “suitable and sufficient measures” to prevent them from falling and also to ensure that no objects are thrown from a height so that they risk injuring anyone below.

Earlier this year, a roofer received £90,000 compensation after falling from a roof in a workplace accident. He suffered numerous injuries including damage to his pelvis, a shattered right eye socket, four fractured ribs and a skull fracture. He has since experienced double vision and a loss of smell and taste. The contractor that he was working for had failed to put up any scaffolding or a safety rail. As a result of the injury, the roofer was unable to work for several months and lost a significant amount of earnings.

He was lucky to have survived the accident. Of all deaths caused by falls from heights at work, roofers make up approximately a quarter. A HSE Inspector estimates that around 11 roofers die every year as a result of falling from a height. Most of these deaths are a result of negligence on the part of the managers who have responsibility for the planning of roofing jobs and the implementation of safety procedures. Falls through fragile roofs account for more deaths than falls from the edge of a roof. When working on a fragile roof, there should be protective netting to prevent workers from falling. Without netting over the entire area of the roof, a worker can fall through and be seriously hurt or killed.

However, it is not just roofers who can be injured through roof work. A warehouse supervisor was severely injured after falling through a roof whilst inspecting roof work that had been done. Her employer was fined £13,000 for failing to follow proper health and safety procedures and for allowing untrained employees on to the roof.

Another possible workplace accident is an injury caused by something falling from a roof. This also proves a risk to members of the public. A roofer dropped a hammer which fell from the roof and injured a passing child. The edge protection on the roof was not sufficient to contain falling objects. A similar accident occurred when a member of the public was injured by a falling slate after the roofing company had failed to install proper edge protection.

Roofers, other workers and members of the public may be injured or even killed in a workplace accident that is the result of negligence at the planning stage and in the implementation of proper safety procedures, such as ensuring that edge protection contains objects that might fall and that there is scaffolding and a guard rail to protect roofers from falling off.