A farming partnership in Surrey has been fined £36,000 after a young father was seriously injured.
The dad sustained four rib fractures when five hay bales, each weighing 600kg, toppled and fell on top of him at Polesden Lacey Farm on 28 April 2022.
The father, 26 at the time, had gone into a barn to collect bales that were being delivered to local customers. The bales had been stored on a layer of pallets to keep them off the barn floor, which was damp at the time.
As he was removing the pallets to reach the stack of bales, an entire column of five toppled over and crushed him against the floor. He laid trapped screaming for help until a nearby dog walker heard his cries and alerted the emergency services. He suffered fractures to his pelvis and ankles as well as his ribs.
He was airlifted to hospital where he underwent emergency surgery before starting months of rehabilitation in order to regain his mobility to start walking again and caring for his, then four-year-old son.
The dad has since resumed his career in farming: "My outlook on what happened is that I can't change it, but I have to deal with what I've got".
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the poorly constructed stack of bales had not been stacked on firm, dry, level, freely draining ground, but instead on top of old pallets as the barn floor was uneven and prone to waterlogging.
The bales were placed in vertical columns and were not "tied in" by alternating the layers so the bales overlap and stop the sack from splitting. The company has also failed to identify safe working methods for unstacking bales, keeping the face racked back as bales were removed.
HSE guidance states the bottom of a stack should set up a dry, sturdy foundation for all additional bales. Bales should all be "tied in" and the stack should be monitored to ensure it remains stable.
F Conisbee and Sons Ltd, pleaded guilty to breaching the Work at Height Regulations SI 2005/735, was fined £36,000 and ordered to pay £4,986 in costs.
HSE inspector Sally Parkes said: "This accident would have been easily avoided if the farm had followed the guidance published by either HSE or the National Farmers Union on the safe stacking of bales. Stacking bales requires skill and should be overseen directly by someone with knowledge of the industry guidance".
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