Construction fatalities rise to 22

Fatalities in construction now stand at 22 following three worker deaths in a week.

The number is slightly down on figures for this time last year, which stood at 26, although it makes grim reading before tomorrow's (Thursday) release of the Health & Safety Executive’s construction fatality figures for 2004/05.

The health and safety message still doesn’t seem to have filtered its way into the industry as there have now been 31 fatalities since the construction industry agreed to improve safety standards at the Safety Summit in February.

Fatality 20 occurred on the morning of 19 July when a 48-year-old Polish worker fell 26m to his death while installing permanent floor gratings on a boiler at the Allington Waste to Energy plant in Maidstone, Kent.

It is unclear if the worker was employed by principle contractor Lurgi UK Ltd or Polish subcontractor Rafako S.A.

Fatality number 21 happened on the morning of 25 July when another Polish worker was squashed while removing concrete slabs from props on a demolition contract for a 12-storey tower block at Eastbourne Terrace in Paddington.

The principle contractor for the project at Telstar House was John F Hunt.

Fatality 22 took place yesterday afternoon on a school extension contract for St Theresas School on Ashingdon Road in Rochford, Essex.

The 59-year-old man, who was standing on a ladder while cutting away joints above his head with a disc cutter, accidentally fell and was killed instantly when the cutter landed on him, severing his neck.

The principle contractor for the project was Western Property Services Ltd.