Teen’s thumb re-attached after being severed off at work
Doctors managed to successfully reattach the thumb of a teenage apprentice after it had been severed off by a rotating blade.
The then 18-year-old resumed his apprenticeship with another firm following the procedure.
He was employed as an apprentice joiner by 3B Construction when the incident happened during the conversion of a 19th century hunting lodge into a luxury hotel in the Highlands.
The company has been fined £40,000 at Tain Sheriff Court following an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and a prosecution brought by the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS).
Read more on the HSE website.
Firm fined for ignoring fire safety
An Altrincham-based construction company has been fined £165k after it repeatedly failed to put in place suitable fire precautions during renovation in Preston.
Glovers Court Ltd were found guilty of four offences in relation to the redevelopment of a former city centre warehouse into 35 apartments spread across six floors. The Glovers Court project was under construction on 16 May 2023 when it was visited by Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service (LFRS). A number of fire safety issues were identified and LFRS prohibited the use of the building, meaning residents already living there had to leave their homes. As construction work was still ongoing, Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service and HSE worked in multi-agency collaboration to deal with this premises.
A HSE inspector then visited the site finding the company not to be complying with its duty to ensure suitable fire safety precautions were in place during ongoing construction work
Heatstroke deaths warning: construction managers must protect workers against extreme temperatures
UK construction managers must take steps to protect site productivity and worker welfare as extreme heat increasingly becomes the norm on building sites during the summer months, researchers have warned.
Global energy solutions provider Aggreko’s recent report, Building in Resilience: Weather-proofing European Construction in a Changing Climate found that more than 70% of UK construction managers surveyed cited extreme heat as the most significant threat to ongoing works.
Its advice for construction firms to secure the necessary equipment to maintain safe working conditions for future projects and reduce heat stress comes as Euronews reports the death of a 47-year-old construction worker near Bologna in Italy this week who sustained a suspected heatstroke while pouring concrete.
For more on the report visit the IOSH Magazine website.
Recall of safety shoes exposes substandard PPE crisis
The British Safety Industry Federation (BSIF) has warned that a recent recall of safety shoes sold via TikTok highlights the alarmingly wide availability of substandard personal protective equipment (PPE) in the UK market.
The recalled product, listed on TikTok Shop under multiple descriptors including “Men’s Anti-smash and Anti-puncture Shoes, Breathable Non-slip Work Shoes, Comfortable Safety Shoes for Men, Fashionable Shoes for Daily Wear, Boy,” was advertised as offering protection despite failing to meet essential safety requirements.
The recall was issued by the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) following the intervention of Lewis Collantine, a product safety consultant specialising in trading standards who brought the issue to light.
Visit the HSM website to read more.
To keep up to date with the latest health & safety news and advice, follow us on social media: