£44k fine after builder paralysed in fall

Two firms have been fined £44,000 after a worker was paralysed in a fall on a construction site.

The man was left paralysed from the waist down after falling two storeys at the central London site.

TJ Myles & Co was fined £20,000 and ordered to pay £7,339 costs while Crispin & Borst was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay costs of £7,155. Both firms were found guilty of breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act.

The victim was working at a site in Grosvenor Street, London W1, when he was struck by a steel structure being hoisted onto an upper floor.

The man was dragged through a hole in the floor, falling two storeys to the ground floor.

Lisa Chappell, an inspector with the Health and Safety Executive, said: “This case again highlights the absolute necessity for the creation and implementation of a site-specific assessment of work at height that is fit for purpose in order to identify appropriate measures to prevent injury.”