One factory worker will be making a work accident claim after a machine he was working trapped and burnt both of his arms – an incident that has led to his employer being fined by the Health and Safety Executive.
Employed by Marling Leek Ltd in August of 2011 when the accident occurred, Stewart Wood, a dye operative, had been operating a machine at the company’s factory that is used to manufacture safety harnesses and seatbelts when the machine developed a problem. Due to meshing becoming entangled within one of the machine’s parts, it fell to Mr Wood to clear the problem, but as he reached inside the still-moving machine his left arm was pulled within the mechanism, trapping him inside – his right arm soon joined it as he attempted to extricate himself from the machine.
According to an article that appeared in the Sentinel newspaper, Mr Wood remained painfully rapped by the machine before one of his colleagues became alerted to the problem and helped to free him. The injured factory worker sustained sever burns to his arms from the machine’s heated rollers, necessitating a three week hospital stay in order to recover, and due to the lasting damage he sustained, Mr Wood is now making a personal injury claim against his employer.
The HSE investigated the circumstances surrounding the man’s injuries, discovering that Mr Wood had not been given any health and safety guidance since 1999, when he first joined the company. The machine had been with the factory even longer – 25 years – and could have been made safe by very simple measures, thus preventing the accident; for the firm’s failures to do so, it now faces a fine of £5,000.
The company was fined £5,000 at court yesterday for health and safety breaches in regards to the accident. The firm has reportedly made safety improvements since the accident occurred.