A £5,000 fine has been levied against a demolition contractor after an employee – Gary Robertson – fell to his death when a rusty pipe bridge platform collapsed. The incident happened on 6th February 2019 at Longannet Power Station, Fife. By September 2020 the contractor concerned – Brown & Mason Ltd – was in administration…Read moreRead more
Accident
Paltry fine for power station fatality
The Break Fast Show #328
In today’s show: As McGee Group sets aside £2.4 million to cover fines arising from the price-fixing probe, you have your say on the CMA fallout. As one of the eight NFDC companies that have admitted involvement in price fixing is fined over the death of a worker back in 2019, we ask: What price…Read moreRead more
Comment – Time to grow a pair…
I have been a vocal advocate for the sharing the details of near-misses, incidents and accidents. I fully endorse the initiative started by incumbent Institute of Demolition Engineers’ president Richard Dolman to share those details as widely as we currently share best practice. And I am firmly of the belief that each incident, accident or…Read moreRead more
Swingate House collapse – Reaction…
24 hours after the catastrophic collapse of Swingate House in Stevenage, Demolition News looks at the collapse and the wider implications for the industry.
BREAKING NEWS – Swingate House building collapse…
We are receiving news that a tower block in Stevenage in Hertfordshire has collapsed this morning while undergoing demolition. There are no reports of casualties at this time. We are checking news wires and contacting the local emergency services and will bring you more as we receive it.
Multiple prosecutions over demolition death
Four men have received suspended prison sentences after a worker died following a church collapse. Scaffolder and father-of-two Jeff Plevey (picured above) was crushed to death at the Citadel Church, Splott, as he worked on its demolition in July 2017. The men were sentenced for offences related to health and safety breaches. Four firms, of…Read moreRead more
A Damning Indictment
How far has the demolition industry really come if the HSE considers it necessary to issue a reminder that buildings can become unstable during demolition? And just how professional is an industry in which accidents and fatalities are greeted not with a scream of outrage but with a shrug of resignation and familiarity?
Wrexham flats collapse during demolition…
Investigations are underway after a section of flats at Llys y Mynydd in Rhos collapsed yesterday. Remodelling work was taking place on the sheltered housing units with no residents or workers inside at the time. Wrexham.com reports that no-one was injured during the incident. Local councillor Paul Pemberton says: “Apparently all trades had left when…Read moreRead more
Comment – No end in sight
At noon today, a pre-inquest review of the Didcot disaster is scheduled to be heard at the Coroner’s Court in Oxfordshire. That review comes 1,974 days after a part of the boiler house at the Didcot A Power Station collapsed while undergoing demolition. Four demolition men lost their lives that day. And it is to…Read moreRead more
Man injured in Kent collapse…
A man was taken to hospital after a building collapsed yesterday afternoon. Firefighters were called to the site in Welling just after lunchtime yesterday. London Fire Brigade says the building had been undergoing demolition before partially collapsing into the highway, leaving scaffolding in a precarious position. Crews made the scene safe and a safety cordon…Read moreRead more
