28/02/2011 - Paper recycler ran unsafe premises
A company which committed 16 fire safety crimes has been fined £40,000.
A fire safety officer turned up to inspect the Poole premises of Total Waste and found many offences being committed. The official had received a complaint from a planning enforcement officer who had appeared unannounced at the site.
Serious breaches of the law were found such as having little means of escape for staff in the event of a fire, with several fire exits being blocked, and a fire alarm was found to have been disabled.
The risk to the workers there was deemed so severe that a prohibition notice was served on Total Waste, shutting the premises completely. The company was ordered not to reopen until it addressed all the major deficiencies in health and safety at the paper recycling plant.
Craig Baker, fire safety chief for Dorset Fire and Rescue Services, said: "Officers found extremely serious fire safety breaches that, in our opinion, offered an immediate threat to the employees of Total Waste Ltd, therefore I believe in this case the fire authority had no option but to take action and prosecute the company."
Copyright © Press Association 2011
Related links
|
