Lack of equipment jeopardises those working at height

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has highlighted a recent case that underlines the importance of using fall arrest equipment in construction work.

Warrington-based Cruden Construction has been prosecuted by the organisation following an incident in which two of its workers fell from a school roof in Didsbury while investigating a leak.

The incident occurred when a flimsy wooden handrail on which one of the employees was leaning gave way, with both men suffering injuries as a result of the one-and-a-half metre fall.

HSE inspector Laura Moran said: "They could easily have been seriously injured or even killed had they been impaled by a scaffolding pole, or fallen all the way to the ground below."

According to the HSE, 38 people died as a result of a workplace fall in Britain in 2010/11, while more than 4,000 suffered a major injury.

The regulator recommends the use of guardrails, working platforms, nets and airbags as potential means of preventing accidents.

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