Imerys prosecuted after worker seriously injured
China clay company fined after employee gets dragged into conveyor machinery at Par Docks
IMERYS Minerals Ltd have been fined £30,000 by Truro Crown Court after a worker was seriously injured when he was drawn into machinery used to flatten china clay bags.
Imerys pleaded guilty to a charge brought by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for failing to ensure the safety of staff engaged in manually loading bags on to conveyors at the company’s European Milling Centre site at Par Docks.
The company was fined for breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, by failing to ensure the health, safety and welfare at work of all their employees, and was also ordered to pay costs of £45,124.
The accident happened on 14 August 2008 when Gerald Dahlstrom, who was loading bags of china clay on to a conveyor belt, was drawn into a gap of approx 6in between the conveyor and another belt mounted above, which was designed to flatten the bags of china clay.
Mr Dahlstrom suffered multiple injuries including serious wounds to his head, shoulder and chest. He was off work for more than a year and is still suffering from the effects of the incident.
After the hearing, HSE Inspector Jo Fitzgerald said: ‘The serious injuries suffered by Gerry Dahlstrom could easily have been avoided by Imerys if they had carried out an assessment and looked at the risks being taken by employees at the site.
‘All employers have a duty to manage health and safety properly and protect their staff as far as possible.’
IMERYS Minerals Ltd have been fined £30,000 by Truro Crown Court after a worker was seriously injured when he was drawn into machinery used to flatten china clay bags.
Imerys pleaded guilty to a charge brought by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for failing to ensure the safety of staff engaged in manually loading bags on to conveyors at the company’s European Milling Centre site at Par Docks.
The company was fined for breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, by failing to ensure the health, safety and welfare at work of all their employees, and was also ordered to pay costs of £45,124.
The accident happened on 14 August 2008 when Gerald Dahlstrom, who was loading bags of china clay on to a conveyor belt, was drawn into a gap of approx 6in between the conveyor and another belt mounted above, which was designed to flatten the bags of china clay.
Mr Dahlstrom suffered multiple injuries including serious wounds to his head, shoulder and chest. He was off work for more than a year and is still suffering from the effects of the incident.
After the hearing, HSE Inspector Jo Fitzgerald said: ‘The serious injuries suffered by Gerry Dahlstrom could easily have been avoided by Imerys if they had carried out an assessment and looked at the risks being taken by employees at the site.
‘All employers have a duty to manage health and safety properly and protect their staff as far as possible.’
