Belfast-based construction company Fernwave Limited was fined £30,000, plus costs, after pleading guilty to three breaches of health and safety legislation brought against them by the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSENI). A representative of Fernwave Limited had previously pleaded guilty to the case arising from the death of a worker at the Obel Tower site in Belfast.
The accident, which occurred on 11 December 2008, caused the death of Jonathon Friel, a general labourer working on the construction of the tower in Belfast. During the removal of temporary supporting structures under the fourth floor, a large section of plywood beneath an empty service void was left unsupported. The area around the void was not signed or fenced off and when removing materials from this area, the plywood gave way and Mr Friel fell around 10 metres landing on the concrete surface of the first floor. He later died in hospital from the injuries sustained.
The work was not properly planned, managed, or supervised and this accident was said by the HSENI to highlight the well-recognised dangers of work at heights.
After the hearing at Laganside Crown Court in Belfast, the Head of HSENI’s Major Investigation Team, Louis Burns said, “We would remind everyone who either works at height or who organises this type of work, that they must be meticulous in preventing people from falling.”
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