An Aberdeen-based catering supply company has been fined
after three people were seriously injured in a gas explosion in a hotel kitchen
in Auchenblae.
The three – a barmaid, customer and a worker – were caught
in the blast at the Drumtochty Arms in Market Square on 7 January 2009, which
happened as work was underway on the premises’ gas system.
Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard that Instant Catering
Maintenance Ltd (ICM) was employed by the hotel to design and install a new
ground floor kitchen to contain three appliances – hotplate range, four ring
hob and a freestanding chargrill – that would be fuelled by propane.
On the day of the incident, Danielle Ormond was working in
the hotel bar when one of the customers complained about the beer, which led
her to go to the cellar to investigate. As she passed through the kitchen,
where ICM employee Neil Coffield was purging the gas system, she noticed a very
strong smell of gas.
Moments later an explosion occurred causing serious injuries
to both Ms Ormond and Mr Coffield and also to a customer, James Guthrie, who
was in the courtyard outside the kitchen door smoking a cigarette.
The damage caused by the blast led to the immediate collapse
of a substantial part of the building, making it unsafe for investigators from
the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to enter and leading to an emergency
demolition order by Aberdeenshire Council.
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