Sheffield workers poisoned in accident at workRSS Feed
A firm has been fined after three Sheffield workers were nearly overcome when they were poisoned with carbon monoxide during an accident at work.
They were part of a five-man team in an asbestos enclosure on a demolition site in Huddersfield when the decontamination unit they were in began to fill with the gas.
Hudderfield Magistrates' Court heard how the first two workers passed through each of the decontamination stages successfully but the next three men were nearly overcome by dizziness and nausea.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), which brought the accident claim, explained that all three were sent to hospital, where it was found that they had suffered carbon monoxide poisoning.
All three; Richard McKearnen, 59, Tony Deakin, 50, and Paul Wainwright, 49, were treated with high-flow oxygen therapy and released the same day.
Newlincs Services Ltd, of Dudley Street, Grimsby, pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety regulations and was fined £5,000.
HSE inspector David Stewart commented: "Carbon monoxide can be a silent killer in the home and, as this case demonstrates, also in the workplace."
According to HSE statistics, around 20 people die each year from carbon monoxide poisoning.
Accident claims advice from Serious Law
Posted by M E Dixon
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