Statement from the HSA: Colas Contracting Ltd fined €270,000 following fatal incident during road resurfacing at Meetcon, Tarbert, Co.Kerry
On Thursday 17 July, at Tralee Circuit Court, Judge Ronan Munro imposed a fine of €270,000 on Colas Contracting Limited for two breaches of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, following a work-related fatal incident which occurred during road resurfacing works on the R551 at Meelcon, Tarbert, Co. Kerry on August 11, 2020.
The company pleaded guilty to two charges under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005:
1. Section 8(1) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 as it relates to Section 8(2)(e) of the said Act, as it relates to Section 77 (9) (a) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005. That is, as an employer, Colas Contracting Limited did fail to ensure so far as was reasonably practicable, the safety, health and welfare at work of its employees, in that it failed to provide a system of work in relation to the resurfacing of the roadway that was planned, organised, performed, maintained and revised as appropriate so as to be, so far as was reasonably practicable safe and without risk to health and as a consequence Andrew Fleming suffered personal injuries and died.
2. Section 8(1) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 as it relates to Section 8(2)(a) of the said Act, as it relates to Section 77(9)(a) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005. That is, as an employer, Colas Contracting Limited did fail to ensure, so far as was reasonably practicable, the safety, health and welfare at work of your employees, in that it failed to manage and conduct work activities, namely the resurfacing of the road way in such a way as to ensure, so far as was reasonably practicable, the safety, health and welfare at work of your employees and as a consequence, Andrew Fleming, suffered personal injuries and died.
Judge Munro imposed a fine of €270,000 on Colas Contracting Ltd on a breach of Section 8(1) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 as it relates to Section 8(2)(e) of the Act. The second charge, related to Section 8(2)(a) of the Act, was taken into account.
Mark Cullen, Interim CEO of the HSA said, “Working in and around plant and equipment is one of the main contributing factors in workplace fatalities and serious non-fatal incidents. Work activities that involve plant and equipment must be planned and organised in such a manner that the work can be carried out safely. Employers must ensure that the plant and equipment used in the work activities are fitted with the necessary and fully functional safety devices. Failure to do so can lead to tragic accidents, as can be seen in this case.”
