24/01/2011 - Crane victim suffered broken bones
A steel erector suffered multiple broken bones when an overhead crane struck the "cherry picker" he was working in as he drilled holes in the roof of a paint workshop.
Alexander Struthers broke his hip, pelvis, thigh bone, knee, ankle and nose when the crane in the workshop at steel fabrication firm BHC Ltd in Carnwath, Lanarkshire, knocked his scissor lift basket five-and-a-half metres to the ground.
The 36-year-old from Thankerton, South Lanarkshire, was in hospital for six days after the accident on April 3 2008 and underwent a nine-hour operation to repair bones. A later operation meant he had an 18-inch pin in his thigh bone and pins, metal plates and screws in his hip, pelvis and ankle.
Mr Struthers, who now uses sticks to help him walk, is in constant pain and still attends physiotherapy. BHC Ltd admitted breaking Regulation 4 of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 at Lanark Sheriff Court. The firm admitted failing to ensure the work at height was properly planned, appropriately supervised and carried out in a reasonably practicable safe manner and was fined £20,000.
Copyright © Press Association 2011
Related links
|
