Company fined £800,000 after employee suffers life-changing injuries

A chemicals company has been fined £800,000 after a worker suffered life-changing injuries in an explosion.

The employee of International Paint Limited spent eight days in intensive care on life support and has been left with:

• all-over body scarring;
• partial blindness to one eye;
• hearing damage; and
• damage to a knee and shoulder.

The employee was off work for 16 months and the explosion at the company's premises in Gateshead caused significant damage to the building.

He was making paint in a large mixing vessel, which involved the use of flammable liquids. As he was emptying resin pellets from a large bulk bag into the vessel, an electrostatic spark was generated, igniting flammable vapour within the vessel and causing a large explosion.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) identified that the company had failed to put sufficient measures in place to control the risk, including a failure to use:

• a correctly working extraction system to remove the flammable vapours; and
• effective electrical earthing of the bulk bag to prevent the build-up of electrostatic charge that led to the static spark discharging.

International Paint Limited pleaded guilty to breaching the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, was fined £800,000 with £14,032 costs.

HSE inspector Paul Wilson said: "This incident should serve as an important reminder to industry that fire and explosion can have devastating consequences".

"It is critical that employers fully assess the risk of fire and explosion including the risk from static discharges and put the necessary control measures in place".