Pulley fall sees a scaffolder get suspended jail term

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Pulley fall sees a scaffolder get suspended jail term after it struck a worker on the head form a height of seven meters.

27-year-old Mark Jones, from Darlaston, was installing lead flashing on a school roof  using lifting equipment installed by Christopher Alan Harvey, trading as Cannock Wood Scaffolding , when the incident occured on 8 August 2013.

Mr Jones, who was working for a subcontractor on the site at the time, was operating a gin wheel to hoist and lower materials with ropes installed by  Christopher Harvey.

As Jones was loading roofing materials from the ground ready for lifting to the roof, the wheel, weighing four kg, fell seven meters fr and struck him on the head fracturing his skull thank fully  has since made a full recovery.

A full HSE investigation found that Harvey had failed to properly secure the gin wheel to the scaffold  and no scaffold fittings were fiited on the end to prevent the gin wheel from falling of the scaffold tube, and the supporting structure was inadequately braced at the timer of the incedent.

Christopher Harvey, 40, of  Cannock, West Midlands, pleaded guilty to a safety breach and received a suspended four month prison sentence  for 12 months and was ordered to pay Jones compensation of £2,500, plus £527.56 in costs .

Commenting after the hearing, HSE Inspector Edward Fryer said: “This incident was entirely preventable and could easily have been avoided had Mr Harvey followed the published guidance to attach the wheel securely.

“Gin wheels are a common accessory for scaffolders and must be attached correctly. The installation of this gin wheel fell far short of the expected standard and made it almost inevitable that it would fall from the scaffold endangering anyone walking beneath.

“Mr Jones suffered a fracture to his skull, but it is nothing more than luck that he was not more seriously injured, or even killed.

“If you are installing scaffolding or associated lifting equipment, it must be left in a safe condition. The quality of work could make the difference between life or death.”