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Deaths
in 2001
Deaths in 2000
Deaths in 2001
Deaths in 2002 Click on the names below for further case details
Click on the names below for further case details
Click on the names below for further case details
Click on the names below for further case details
Click on the names below for further case details
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FURTHER DETAILS OF DEATHS
Christopher, a technical adviser to the Ford Transit Van Co., was killed when he fell into a 30 yard long collector vat full of hot paint. Christopher was trying to stop the vat from overflowing when he slipped and fell in. In June 2003 at Winchester Crown Court Ford, the two contracted managers responsible and the designers of the tank, Haden Drysys International Limited, pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. The more serious charges of manslaughter were thus dropped by the CPS and all parties were fined. Ford has been fined £50,000 for failing to ensure the safety of its own workers, £250,000 for failing to ensure the safety of others and to pay £46,688 costs.The two managers Peter Preston, 51, and Paul McKenzie,55, were fined £5,000 each for failing to ensure the safety of staff. Haden Drysys International Limited were fined £20,000 and ordered to pay £22,500 costs. The two men were originally charged with manslaughter following the incident in 2000 but pleaded guilty to the lesser counts and the Crown Prosecution Service dropped the more serious charges. Speaking outside court, Christopher's sister Anne Grundy said, 'We were very angry that the serious charges were dropped a soon as Ford and the others offered to plead guilty to the lesser charges.' Christopher's family felt that justice had not been done as the full evidence had not been heard. They called on the government to bring in a new offence of corporate killing and pressed for a full inquest.
Jack Waterman
Jack, a steel erector, died from a fall from a barn roof in West Petersfield. The inquest was held at Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Coroner's Court on 4 December 2003 when a verdict of 'Accidental Death' was returned.
Cyril Boyle
Cyril, an inmate at the General Hospital, Southampton, died after possibly ingesting a tablet that caused him to aspirate The inquest was held at Southampton and New Forest Coroner’s Court on 21/22 February 2002. A verdict of 'Accidental Death' was returned.
Marcus Sizer
Marcus was killed while travelling on the highway, possibly delivering tale-away food. The inquest was held at Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Coroner's Court on 7 January 2003 when a verdict of 'Accidental Death' was returned.
Barry Howard
Barry, a self-employed mechanic, was crushed to death under a vehicle he was working on. The inquest was held at Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Coroner's Court on 11 March 2003 when a verdict of 'Accidental Death' was returned.
Arthur (Archie) Whitear
Archie, a very popular dustman who had worked for Fareham Council for 37 years, died after being crushed to death under the wheels of a lorry driven by a colleague at the Paulsgrove landfill site, owned by waste management firm Onyx. The inquest was held at Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Coroner's Court on 4 December 2003 when a verdict of 'Accidental Death' was returned. The inquest jury heard from an eyewitness that Archie was attempting to swing up on to the side step of the vehicle by using the wing mirror bracket, when he slipped and was dragged underneath the wheels. The inquest was told how the practices of riding on the side of the vehicle was deemed to be unsafe by both Fareham council and Onyx. However question marks were raised over the stringent health and safety checks that were carried out to ensure employees were aware of the risks. Heath and Safety Inspector Roger Upfold told the inquest how an investigation had been launched following the accident and that the inquiries were ongoing.
David Bail
David, an employee at Change of Style, was caught in a stone-cuting machine and crushed, resulting in massive head injuries from which he later died at Southampton General Hospital. Michael Shaw and Gavin Shaw, directors and business owners of Change of Style, a stone-cutting company in
Totton on the outskirts of Southampton, were charged with David's manslaughter. Witnesses said Michael Shaw had said the stoppages cost too much time and money. Mr Shaw denied any responsibility throughout a three-week trial that ended with a hung jury on 2 August but he changed his plea at Winchester Crown Court the next day. He received a two-year suspended prison sentence. The judge, Mr Justice Owen, said the only reason he had suspended the sentence was because jail would jeopardise the future of the company which employs 25 people. 'Some may feel you have got off lightly. But you will have to live out your days in the knowledge that you are responsible for that terrible tragedy, the needless death of this young man.' Outside court, David's sister, Georgina Bail, 27, said of the sentence, 'I'm outraged. They have taken away my brother, my soulmate, my best friend. My life has been torn apart. I wouldn't like to put into words what I think of Mr Shaw. We're quite glad he has admitted it but it has taken him three years,' she said. David's father Chris said, 'At least another tragedy has been prevented because of the safety checks at this and other places. As a family we would not want to bear the loss of 25 people's livelihoods. If he was jailed he would only do 12 months.' Michael Shaw and the company were fined a total of £70,000 for ten breaches of health and safety regulations. His son, Gavin Shaw, was fined £1,500 for one health and safety breach. He was earlier cleared of a manslaughter charge due to the lack of evidence. A manslaughter charge against the firm was ordered to lie on file. The court heard that Peter Cowley, production manager at the time of the death, had pleaded guilty to a breach of health and safety regulations. Magistrates fined him £600 and ordered him to pay £100 costs. In September 2006 an inquest jury at Hampshire Coroner's Court returned a verdict of unlawful killing. Detective Sergeant Steve Edbury, of Hampshire Police, who led the investigation, told the jury that the automated machine, which cut stone for fireplaces and kitchen worktops, had light sensors around it that immediately stopped the machine when someone broke the continuous beam. It also had hinged guards that, if lowered when the machine was working, would break a circuit and stop it. But Mr Edbury said these safety devices had been bypassed to make the machine more efficient because if it was stopped it had to start the programme again costing time and money. 'It was common knowledge that the photo-electric beam had been deliberately defeated,' the coroner Mr Wiseman said. 'It's a case so fundamental, if one wasn't careful, one would be running a factory back to Victorian times. 'Sadly, sometimes because of a wish to retain employment or whatever the combination of factors, that even where there are a significant number of people involved the whistle is not necessarily blown on the process itself.' Mr Wiseman told Mr Edbury, 'You have painted a really quite horrific picture of the way the factory was operating and the risks, indeed, that individuals were taking in relation to their own safety, let alone any question of guiding the company.' In November 2006 Sir Ivor Judge presiding at the Criminal Appeal Court in London declared the suspended jail sentence 'too lenient' and imposed instead a 15 month jail term on Mr Shaw. Sentencing Shaw, Sir Judge said, 'This disaster has been with you for three years - serving a sentence will help to expurgate the undoubted sense of guilt you feel. A young man lost his life because of the gross negligence of his employer. We emphasise health and safety in this place of employment was literally a matter of life and death. Here, safety was ignored for business convenience, at the peril of death. The machine and the other two had, in fact, been dangerous and potentially lethal from the day they were first installed some years earlier.'
Jason Pepall
Jason, a railworker from Portsmouth, died from electrocution when he fell onto the live rail between Basingstoke and Eastleigh while working as a lookout for a gang replacing insulation pots. He was employed by McGinley's subbing to Balfour Beatty Rail Services. The inquest was held at North East Hampshire Coroner’s Court on 12 November 2003 when an Open verdict was returned.
Brian Westbrook
Brian was a self-employed electrician who installed electrical wiring. The inquest was held at Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Coroner's Court on 23 November 2004 when a verdict of 'Accidental Death' was returned.
Tony Stone
Tony, a HGV driver from Hatch Warren, was reversing at the Sainsbury's distribution depot, Houndsmill Rd, Basingstoke when he was trapped and died at the scene. Basingstoke Environmental Health officers, as the enforcing authority, investigated the case . The inquest was held at North East Hampshire Coroner’s Court on 7 January 2004 when a jury returned a verdict of 'Accidental Death'. In his summing up the coroner said that Tony's vehicle had rolled forward and he was crushed between the door and cab of the vehicle.
David Ashton
David, the employee of an a specialist abseiling company, Total Access, fell 30 ft to his death while inspecting the ventilation shaft of a railway tunnel which runs under Highlands Road and the M27 in north Fareham. He is thought not to have been wearing ropes at the time. The inquest was held at Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Coroner's Court on 14 September 2005 when a verdict of 'Accidental Death' was returned.
Peter Butler
Peter, an assistant countryside ranger for Hampshire County Council, was killed when his tractor crashed and toppled on to him. The inquest was held at Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Coroner's Court on 23 March 2006 when a verdict of 'Accidental Death' was returned.
Derek Arthur Smith
Derek was a self-employed construction worker who suffered fatal neck wounds in an accident involving a disc saw. He was taken to hospital but died soon after. The inquest was held at Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Coroner's Court on 13 September 2005 when a verdict of 'Accidental Death' was returned.
Joey Knowles
Joey was crushed to death when a forklift truck he was driving toppled over at his family's builder's yard. The incident happened as Joey attempted to drive the truck when he was left alone at the yard where he worked. He is believed to have lost control of the vehicle as he took a sharp turn. As the vehicle toppled over Joey is thought to have fallen out of the seat and ended up underneath the vehicle – which weighed about two tonnes. The inquest will be held at Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Coroner's Court. No date has yet been set.
Krisztian Takacs
Krisztian, a 26-year-old Hungarian, died in an explosion and a fire at a boat yard, which also left the boat owner with severe burns. It was announced in August 2006 that Philip Roger Wyman had been charged with manslaughter. He was also charged with three health and safety offences. Mr Wyman, the boat owner, was found guilty of Krisztian's manslaughter by a jury at Winchester Crown Court in February 2007. Wyman who denied manslaughter and breaching the Health and Safety Act will be sentenced at a later date. Both Krisztian and Wyman were on board the partially built yacht melting lead for the keel using propane gas cylinders. In court it was alleged that Wyman's gross negligence had caused the fire. Expert witnesses said working conditions on the boat constituted 'an immediate and serious risk'. The jury was not asked for a verdict on alternative charges of breaching Health and Safety legislation.
Lee Constable
Lee worked as a carpenter on a Gosport site building social housing (principal contractors G. Osborne). A timber frame he was erecting fell and crushed him. The inquest will be held at Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Coroner's Court. No date has yet been set.
Anthony Sheridan
Anthony died when an industrial oven exploded at the Wallop Defence Systems factory. The firm, near the Army Air Corps training base, makes high technology electronic countermeasures and decoys for aircraft. Police said four other people suffered minor injuries in the explosion. A spokesman for Hampshire Fire Service said, 'Part of the building has been completely demolished and there's debris spread over the area of a football pitch. Apparently there was a fire ball and a plume of smoke which quickly almost extinguished itself.' The inquest will be held at Central Hampshire Coroner's Court. No date has yet been set.
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