Egg Worker Injured after Falling through Floor
A worker at a Shropshire egg supplier was injured after falling through the floor of a poultry barn.
The incident happened at the premises of Staveley’s Eggs Ltd in July 2011. The female worker had worked for the company for 6 years as an egg packer.
The accident happened because floorboards had been taken up so that building work could take place on the upper floor of the building. However, the floorboards that were lifted were just behind a door that was used regularly by egg packing staff.
The unnamed woman opened the door and fell through the hole in the floor. She landed on the concrete surface some two metres below, and suffered serious injury. She broke bones in both of her ankles and had to spend eight days in hospital recovering. During this time, she had an operation to fit metal plates in her left ankle, but still suffers from poor mobility to this day.
An investigation into the accident by the Health and Safety Executive found that there were no measures in place to stop a fall from height accident occurring. Even basic measures (such as putting up warning signs) had not been followed. There was also no written risk assessment done for the flooring work.
Staveley’s Eggs Ltd went in front of Shrewsbury Magistrates’ Court last week and pleaded guilty to breaking work at height regulations. They were fined £25,000.
