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Deaths
in 2001
Deaths in 2001
Deaths in 2002 Click on the names below for further case details
Click on the names below for further case details
No details of deaths available Click on the names below for further case details
FURTHER DETAIL
Thomas Waring
Thomas was cleaning the roof of a barn on his father's farm when he fell through and was killed. The inquest was held at Rutlands and North Leicestershire Coroner’s Court on 16 October 2001. A verdict of 'Accidental Death' was returned.
Keith Branston
Keith Branston, a worker at the Mountsorrel Quarry, Quorn was killed on 12 March 2002, while carrying out safety work, when a corroded railing on a high walkway gave way and he fell 100ft into a chute on a conveyor belt leading to a granite crushing machine. The inquest was held at Rutland and North Leicestershire Coroner’s Court on 19 February 2003. An 'Accidental Death' verdict was returned. In April 2004, at Leicester Crown Court, Lafarge Aggregates Limited were fined £200,000 and ordered to pay £33,571 costs after they admitted breaching four different safety regulations. Prosecutor Ian Bridge told the court that no-one saw Keith fall so he could not be saved. The company admitted it had failed to ensure the 30-year-old railings were safe and in a good state of repair. They also accepted they exposed an employee to risk and did not have an adequate inspection and maintenance system in place at the time. Mr Bridge told the court that Mr Branston was replacing wooden kick boards on the walkway to the conveyor belt when he fell. Judge Michael Stokes,QC at Leicester Crown Court said, 'Quarries have the highest death rate of any land-based industry in this country.' He added, 'It's a very large and profitable company and it has to be a serious sum to mark the failings in this case.'
Bob Miller
Bob, a firefighter who had been in service for 26 years, was killed while tackling a fire in a disused hosiery factory. The fire took over two hours to bring under control. Bob was one of four fireman sent into the blazing 51 States factory to search for trapped people and to help get a hose reel closer to the flames. The inquest was held at Leicester City and South Leicester Coroner’s Court on 12 November 2003. The jury returned a verdict of 'Accidental Death'. The jury at the inquest heard the fire was probably started by drug users in the factory basement trying to keep warm. They heard evidence from firefighter Terry Stratford who said they had entered the first floor room of the building in Leicester city centre. He told Bob there was a hole in the floor - and Bob acknowledged him. Terry pointed his torch at the floor and again Bob acknowledged him. He then heard a loud crash and realised Bob had fallen 25 feet through the floor. Bob was carried out of the building by his colleagues, having suffered multiple fractures, but was pronounced dead at Leicester Royal Infirmary
Ken Chalk
Ken, a forklift truck driver was killed when his vehicle overturned in a hole dug as part of a new safety project at Elsome Engineering in Asfordby Hill, near Melton. Ken was crushed by his own truck as he was moving steel girders from the firm's yard to its workshop. The inquest was held at Leicester City and S. Leicestershire Coroner’s Court on 1 December 2003. A narrative verdict was returned, finding that Ken had been found trapped beneath the cab of his truck. Leicester Crown Court, sitting on 19 March 2004, found that Ken's death would have been prevented had a risk assessment been carried out before building work started on the site. Elsome Engineering was fined for Health and Safety at Work offences and had to pay costs, amounting to £113,000.
Danny Leighton
Danny was killed on 11th April 2003 when a tower scaffolding he was using on a house extension in Cossington fell over. The inquest was held at Rutland and North Leicestershire Coroner’s Court on 1 December 2005 when a verdict of 'Accidental Death' was returned. On Monday 5 March 2007 at Leicester Crown Court, Michael Mortimer, Danny's boss, was sentenced for contravening the Health and Safety at Work Act and was fined £50,000. Costs were £43,881. Mortimer had pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing at Loughborough Magistrates on 9 January 2007. Leicestershire Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Construction Principal Inspector Steve Spence said, 'This was a tragic accident which killed a young man. It was entirely preventable had the scaffold tower been properly set up and maintained. Every year people working at height lose their lives or suffer serious injury and firms need to exercise sufficient control to prevent this sort of thing happening - including carrying out a proper risk assessment.' Throughout Britain 46 people died and over 3350 suffered a serious injury in 2005/06 as a result of a fall from height in the workplace. Falls from height are the most common cause of fatal injury and the second most common cause of major injury to employees, accounting for around 15% of injuries at work. Bernard Thorogood, prosecuting for the Health and Safety Executive, said that Danny was sub-contracted to carry out the work by Mortimer, who had never carried out a risk assessment for the job, despite this being a legal requirement. He said, 'On the day of the accident, the feet of this tower weren't securely located. Evidence suggests Mr Leighton was climbing up the tower when it toppled over. Hard hats were not being used at the time. There was a multiplicity of faults in the use of the tower before the accident. There were no guard rails or toe boards, the planks were wider than the tower and it wasn't safe in its construction or use. 'Mortimer didn't manage the site properly or consider the need to implement Heath and Safety policies. This was an entirely avoidable loss of life.'
Lawrence Hunt
Lawrence, the owner of Heat Safe Products, died when he was crushed against a wall by a forklift truck while fitting a rack to his business premises wall. The inquest was held at Rutland and North Leicestershire Coroner’s Court on 30 March 2006 when an 'Accidental Death' verdict was returned.
Alan Garner
David died in hospital after his arm was torn off when it got caught in a tractor while he was working near Grantham. The inquest was held at Rutland and North Leicestershire Coroner’s Court on 7 June 2006 when an 'Accidental Death' verdict was returned. In September 2006 Go Plant admitted three counts of of breaching health and safety laws at Loughborough Magistrates Court. Go Plant was fined £250 for not registering the Granite Way depot with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), £2,000 for not having a proper risk assessment and £8,000 for failing to ensure the health and safety of an employee. The firm was also ordered to pay £3,342 in costs. HSE inspector Michelle Mannering , prosecuting, said the gantry was designed only to move heavy items up and down, not sideways - but the company had not produced a risk assessment document warning employees not to use it in that way.
David Willott
David was using a pump driven by a tractor Power Take Off (PTO) to unblock a blocked slurry tanker. There was no Power Input Connection Guard. David's clothing caught on the shaft and he became entangled, which resulted in the amputation of his arm and he later died from multiple injuries. The inquest was held at Rutland and North Leicestershire Coroner’s Court on 7 June 2006 when an 'Accidental Death' verdict was returned. In November 2006 at Melton Magistrates Court, Hillcrest EM Ltd pleaded guilty to a breach of Regulation 11 (1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 for not ensuring that measures were taken to prevent access to a dangerous part of machinery. Also that under Regulation 3 (1) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, that the company did not carry out a suitable and sufficient risk assessment. Magistrates at Melton fined the company £4,000. Costs were £2,232. HSE Inspector Sian Tiernan said, 'This was a tragic accident which has killed a young man. Every year people are killed or seriously injured in accidents involving tractor PTOs and PTO drive shafts. Most of these accidents are preventable if the PTO and PTO drive shaft are fitted with guards of good design which are properly used and maintained. The people best placed to do that are farmers and their staff, working together to improve health and safety in this critical area.'
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