Roofer who suffered from vertigo dies in fall

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A roofer who fell from a ladder while working was on medication for vertigo, an inquest has heard.

Fifty-two-year-old Barry Lock died two days later after falling from the ladder to his death at the house he was working at in Crowborough.

The Eastbourne Herald reported that he had been carrying roof battens up the ladder when he slipped and fell to the ground.

His brother and business partner Kevin Lock rushed to him and an ambulance was called. He was airlifted to Kings College Hospital in London but died of severe head injuries two days later on February 17.

The inquest at Eastbourne heard that Lock was an experienced roofer and ran his own company KBM Roofing with his family.

Kevin Lock, of Baron’s Close, said on the morning the accident occurred he and his brother had been carrying battens up the ladder. He stayed on the roof while Barry continued bringing materials up on to the roof.

Kevin said: “I heard him fall, cry out and hit the ground.

“We don’t know how far he fell from as nobody saw him fall.”

The inquest heard Lock had been on medication for vertigo and a post mortem examination revealed he had a mild underlying heart condition, which East Sussex deputy coroner Christopher Wilkinson said could have also caused him to fall.

Health and Safety inspector Amanda Huff told the inquest an inquiry at the site in Beacon Road West after Mr Lock’s death showed there had no breaches in health and safety practices or guidelines.

“No health and safety laws were breached,” she said. “Mr Lock was an experienced roofer.”

Recording a verdict of accidental death, Wilkinson also praised Mr Lock’s family for agreeing to his organs to be donated after his death.

This proves that to me ladders are one of the most dangerous places on site especially when going from ladder to scaffold in my opinion.