Northamptonshire firm prosecuted after scaffold collapse
Northamptonshire shoppers were forced to run for safety as a scaffold collapsed and fell some 20 metres towards them, a court has heard.
Nobody was hurt, but several people required treatment for shock as a result of the incident at the Willow Place Shopping Centre in Queen’s Square, Corby on 17 August 2012.
Local firm Desborough Scaffolding Limited, of Desborough, was prosecuted today (16 December) by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after an investigation established that the scaffold was structurally unsound.
Northampton Magistrates’ Court was told that debris netting had been fitted to the scaffolding tubes, but in high winds on the day it acted as a sail and caused the structure to pull away and apart – sending metal poles and other materials raining to the ground below. The falling scaffold smashed through shop canopies below and also pulled down signs. Several businesses were forced to close while the clean-up took place and the area was made safe. The incident was captured on CCTV.
The HSE investigation found the scaffold had not been erected in a way to ensure it would remain stable, and had not been designed by a competent person to ensure it had adequate strength and rigidity for the purpose and environment it was to be used in.
Desborough Scaffolding Limited, of Stoke Albany Road, Desborough, were fined £16,000 and ordered to pay £4,678 in costs after pleading guilty to single breaches of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007.
Speaking after the hearing, HSE Inspector Sam Russell said:
““It was sheer luck that no-one was seriously injured or killed as a result of this totally preventable incident.
“Scaffolding erected to an approved design by competent persons should be able to withstand high wind loads without failing.
“This case highlights the requirement of following prescribed industry designs and manufacturers’ instructions. The company’s failure to do so put innocent workers and members of the public at significant risk.”
For more information about working with scaffolding visit www.hse.gov.uk/construction/safetytopics/scaffold.htm[1]
Notes to Editors:
1. Regulation 8(a) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 states: “Every employer shall ensure that, in the case of a guard-rail, toe-board, barrier or similar collective means of protection, Schedule 2 is complied with.”
2. Regulation 28(2) of the Construction (Design and Management Regulations) 2007 states: “Any buttress, temporary support or temporary structure must be of such design and so installed and maintained as to withstand any foreseeable loads which may be imposed on it, and must only be used for the purposes for which it is so designed, installed and maintained.”
3. CCTV footage of the incident is available from Regional News Network on 0115 872 4741