Ian Denham has represented the family of a young man from Eccles, Manchester who was killed after being struck by a metal pressing machine, weighing around half a tonne, which fell from a fork-lift truck.
A two-week jury inquest at Bolton Coroner’s Court heard how Bruce Dempsey, a 25-year-old welding engineer, died as he helped to move a steel pressing machine at a workplace in Eccles, Manchester.
At the inquest, concerns were raised about the level of training Bruce had received, along with a lack of procedures regarding the safe use of fork lift trucks. These concerns prompted Coroner Jennifer Leeming to say she would report the verdict to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to seek a formal review of the training given to forklift truck drivers, banksmen and others who could come into contact with them.
The jury returned a verdict of accidental death with a narrative verdict.
This case emphasises the critical importance of careful risk assessment and diligent health and safety planning, along with the dangers of making broad assumptions and relying on the ‘common-sense’ of untrained employees.
Ian Denham was instructed by Irwin Mitchell’s serious injury team in Manchester.
The case has been reported by the following:
Manchester Evening News (http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1486552_family-of-factory-death-man-from-eccles-call-for-better-staff-training)
BBC (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-17867973).