July 16th, 2009
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) is being sued by a former engineer who claims that the organisation failed to protect him while he was working on a project in Iraq.
Graham Hopps, 45, had been involved in the construction of a power plant in 2003 and was travelling in a Land Rover with his colleagues when a bomb went off.
The blast ripped out Mr Hopps’ shoulder and decapitated another man, which Mr Hopps said still causes him nighmares.
Due to his physical and mental injuries, he has been unable to return to work with the MoD and is now taking legal action against the military body, as well as the engineering company Mott MacDonald.
He claims that the route the team had been ordered to take was "unapproved" and that they should have been given an armoured vehicle.
"In some kind of fatal lottery, my employers and the MoD took unnecessary risks by deciding that others, not me, would get the protection," he commented.
The MoD said it would be inappropriate to comment.
Earlier this month, the MoD was forced to pay compensation to Irish Guards officer Charles Radclyffe after he was injured while jumping into a reservoir, the Salisbury Journal reported.
Tags: Armoured Vehicle, Bomb, Colleagues, Engineer, Engineering Company, Hopps, Iraq, Irish Guards, Land Rover, Lottery, Macdonald, Military Body, Ministry Of Defence, Power Plant, Salisbury Journal, Travelling, Unnecessary Risks
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April 27th, 2009
A construction worker who claims he has been unable to return to work since an accident in 2006 is seeking compensation from his former employer.
Iain Cowan was working as a banksman for Norwest Holst – the main contractor on the building of the M20 motorway – where he was overseeing the digging of a trench, Building magazine reports.
He told excavator operator David Price to stop the machine and move it sideways while he talked to colleagues, but Mr Price did not do so and Mr Cowan was knocked into the trench.
After being taken to hospital, it was found that Mr Cowan had a fractured spine, a chest injury and a cut leg.
He is now suing Norwest Holst – since renamed Vinci Construction – for negligence and £250,000 in damages, claiming that the company had not provided a suitably trained machine operator.
The company has not commented on the case.
According to the Health and Safety Executive, there were 3,764 reported major injuries in the construction industry between 2007 and 2008.
Tags: 250k, Banksman, Chest Injury, Colleagues, Construction Industry, Construction Worker, Cowan, Damages, David Price, Excavator Operator, Fractured Spine, Health And Safety, Health And Safety Executive, M20 Motorway, Machine Operator, Main Contractor, Negligence, Norwest Holst
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February 26th, 2009
A company which failed to put appropriate guards over its machinery has been prosecuted after a man suffered a serious injury to his arm.
The unnamed employee was working at 600 UK, an engineering firm situated in Heckmondwike, which is in the borough of Kirklees some nine miles from Leeds.
According to the Huddersfield Examiner, the 47-year-old was working a jig borer when he caught his sleeve and was pulled into the machinery. He could not pull himself free and had to be helped by his colleagues.
He lost tissue, sustained nerve damage and also suffered a compound fracture.
The Health and Safety Executive fined 600 UK £20,000 for failing to protect its workers.
Inspector Geoff Fletcher said: "Given that this is a heavy industrial machine operated by a company which makes machinery of this type, they should have known what standard of protection was required. Guards should have been in place."
Tags: Arm Injury, Borough Of Kirklees, Colleagues, Compound Fracture, Engineering Firm, Health And Safety, Health And Safety Executive, Heckmondwike, Huddersfield Examiner, Jig Borer, Leeds, Nerve Damage, Nine Miles
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February 19th, 2009
A woman is seeking damages of up to £300,000 after her husband was killed in a car crash while working for the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
Paul Jennings, 50, was an engineering contractor for the organisation in Germany in June 2006, the Derby Evening Telegraph attests.
He had been on his way to a barracks in Monchengladbach with two other men when the vehicle they were in was hit by a lorry at a junction where the traffic lights were out of order.
Mr Jennings was killed and his colleagues were seriously hurt. However, the MoD did not take fingerprints from the car, did not test seatbelts and failed to take blood samples in the subsequent investigation.
"I don’t believe they took my husband’s death very seriously and I don’t think they carried out the investigation very thoroughly," said Beverley Jennings.
She took legal action against the MoD, which states that it has admitted liability and is now working towards a settlement with Ms Jennings.
The Armed Forces Compensation Scheme, established in 2005, provides compensation for all injuries, ill health and deaths that occur mostly during service.
Tags: Armed Forces, Blood Samples, Car Crash, Colleagues, Compensation Scheme, Damages, Deaths, Derby Evening Telegraph, Fingerprints, Germany, Ill Health, Lorry, Ministry Of Defence, Monchengladbach, Mr Jennings, Paul Jennings, Subsequent Investigation, Traffic Lights, Woman
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February 13th, 2009
A man who drove trains in Carlisle has secured a compensation payout from his former employers after being involved in an accident that could have been fatal.
Frank Dolan, 44, was driving a recovery train to pick up a broken down freight vehicle in August 2004 when the damaged train’s brakes suddenly failed.
It gathered speed and Mr Dolan and his colleagues only just had time to jump from their own vehicle before the other train smashed into it.
Mr Dolan suffered broken ribs, but said the mental scars run much deeper.
"As a result of this accident I’ll never work on a train again. It’s been four years now and I still get flashbacks," he commented.
He took legal action against EWS Railways, which has now agreed to an out-of-court settlement of £41,000.
Railway companies must protect their employees from hazards in the same way as other employers. If they neglect to do so and an injury occurs, the victims may be eligible for compensation.
Tags: Brakes, Carlisle, Colleagues, Court Settlement, Damages, Flashbacks, Frank Dolan, Mental Scars, Quot, Railway Companies, Railways, Ribs, Train Driver, Trains, Work Train
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