A Scottish contracting company has been fined after an incident where a worker struck an underground cable while digging holes to erect a new fence. The worker suffered serious burns to his hands and face while he was working on a primary school refurbishment project in Scotland.
Hamilton Sheriff Court heard how the incident had taken place at a primary school in East Kilbride. The worker was digging holes as a part of the erection of a new fence when his device struck a 430 volt underground electricity cable which resulted in him sustaining flash burns to his hands and face. The Health and Safety executive investigated the incident and found that while reports containing information about the buried services were made available, the company had failed to provide this information to the workers and failed to clearly identify the location of the buried power lines. In addition to this failure, they also should have ensured that all workers had been appropriately trained to use the digging devices used.
HSE inspector Graeme McMinn said “There is an obligation on contractors to ensure that workers are informed of the dangers from buried underground services, and the need to ensure those services are located, checked and clearly marked.”
The company was fined £7,500 after pleading guilty to breaching regulation 34(3) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 and Section 33(1)(c) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.
All employers have a responsibility to ensure the health and safety of their workers while they carry out their duties. This includes providing the appropriate equipment, training and supervision of tasks to ensure people are not unduly injured during their employment.
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