A national sweet manufacturer has been fined £120,000 and
ordered to pay £9,538 in prosecution costs after the fork on a forklift truck
pierced a worker's foot, entering the instep and exiting the bridge, breaking
every bone in its path.
Kevin Lowe, 48, suffered life-changing injuries in the
incident at Tangerine Confectionery in Blackpool on 19 September 2012 and is
now only able to walk short distances with the use of a stick.
The company was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after an investigation found the incident was one of three collisions in the same location at the factory within a three-month period.
Preston Crown Court was told Mr Lowe, from Blackpool, had been driving a ride-on pallet truck in a warehouse at Tangerine Confectionery's Vicarage Lane plant, and was manoeuvring the vehicle very close to the entrance because of a lack of space inside.
He was injured when another worker drove through the plastic strip curtains that hung down over the entrance, and the two vehicles collided.
Mr Lowe was rushed to Blackpool Victoria Hospital where surgeons initially thought they would have to amputate his foot. He spent nine days in hospital and his foot was eventually saved using large screws. His injury will affect him for the rest of his life and he is unable to return to work or to drive.
The court was told the plastic curtains over the entrance were designed to keep out insects and birds, but they obscured the view of workers going into the warehouse.
The area had also been overcrowded with pallets from two other warehouses while maintenance work was being carried out, which restricted the space drivers had to operate vehicles and increased the flow of traffic.
The company has since removed the plastic curtains and changed its systems so vehicles and pedestrians can move safely around the site.
Tangerine Confectionery pleaded guilty to a breach of the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992. NEBOSH National General Certificate in occupational Health & Safety
The company was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after an investigation found the incident was one of three collisions in the same location at the factory within a three-month period.
Preston Crown Court was told Mr Lowe, from Blackpool, had been driving a ride-on pallet truck in a warehouse at Tangerine Confectionery's Vicarage Lane plant, and was manoeuvring the vehicle very close to the entrance because of a lack of space inside.
He was injured when another worker drove through the plastic strip curtains that hung down over the entrance, and the two vehicles collided.
Mr Lowe was rushed to Blackpool Victoria Hospital where surgeons initially thought they would have to amputate his foot. He spent nine days in hospital and his foot was eventually saved using large screws. His injury will affect him for the rest of his life and he is unable to return to work or to drive.
The court was told the plastic curtains over the entrance were designed to keep out insects and birds, but they obscured the view of workers going into the warehouse.
The area had also been overcrowded with pallets from two other warehouses while maintenance work was being carried out, which restricted the space drivers had to operate vehicles and increased the flow of traffic.
The company has since removed the plastic curtains and changed its systems so vehicles and pedestrians can move safely around the site.
Tangerine Confectionery pleaded guilty to a breach of the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992. NEBOSH National General Certificate in occupational Health & Safety
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