A tragic accident at a Cheshire farm has led to significant fines.
- Roofer Mark Young died after falling from a forklift truck at Moss Hall Farm.
- Health and Safety Executive (HSE) deemed the equipment used as inappropriate for height work.
- Denis Thornhill, the farm owner, faced legal consequences for breaching safety regulations.
- The incident highlights persistent safety issues within the construction industry.
In a tragic mishap at Moss Hall Farm in February 2021, a roofer plunged to his death from an unsuitable work platform. Mark Young, a seasoned roofing specialist aged 64, was endeavouring to repair the roof of a packing shed when he fell approximately 5 metres. He was precariously positioned in a potato box balanced on the forks of a forklift, which unexpectedly became unstable, leading to a fatal fall. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in collaboration with Cheshire Constabulary conducted a thorough investigation, revealing a series of safety violations.
The investigation uncovered that the forklift used was unfit for the task at hand. The HSE explicitly pointed out that forklifts, especially when deployed with a box balancing atop, are ‘never a suitable platform for working at height.’ During the court proceedings at Chester Crown Court, it was determined that Denis Thornhill, the 78-year-old farm owner, had disregarded proper safety protocols, albeit he was cleared of more serious charges of gross negligence manslaughter. Nevertheless, Thornhill faced legal accountability due to breaches of health and safety regulations.
Further examination revealed that the safety equipment used was inadequate. The potato box lacked essential safety features mandatory for non-integrated work platforms, such as being secured to avert overbalancing incidents. This oversight, alongside the infrequent inspection of the forklift, accentuates a critical lapse in ensuring a safe working environment. Moreover, Thornhill was not formally trained to operate the forklift, a factor contributing significantly to the unsafe conditions that led to Young’s untimely demise.
The legal outcome saw Thornhill fined £4,000 with additional costs of an equal amount, while his firm, D.S. Thornhill (Rushton) Ltd, faced a £12,000 fine plus £10,000 in costs. The HSE inspector Ian Betley expressed that this incident was avoidable, stating, ‘The forklift truck and potato box were the wrong pieces of equipment for the job and never a suitable platform for working at height.’ This case serves as a stark reminder, emphasising the critical responsibility all employers hold in safeguarding their workers from preventable accidents.
Despite being a grim statistic, the construction sector remains the most hazardous, with the latest figures disclosing that 51 construction workers lost their lives in the year leading up to March 2024, representing 37% of all industries surveyed. Alarmingly, despite these figures, there has been a noticeable decline in the number of HSE inspections pertaining to falls from height, a statistic that raises significant concern regarding ongoing safety enforcement within the industry.
The tragic death at Moss Hall Farm underscores the persistent and critical need for rigorous safety standards in construction.
