Firm fined following drill accident

Prosecutions and Claims |
01.04.2007

Livingston-based groundwork company Consolidate must pay a £3,500 fine after an employee suffered multiple fractures to both arms after becoming entangled in the drill string of a Halco 450 drilling rig in May 2006. The only safety feature on the machine was a single trip wire - which had not been checked regularly and was not working properly - and there were no written instructions on safe working methods. Consolidate pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act and was fined at Edinburgh Sheriff's Court on 9 February. The HSE has made drilling rig guarding a priority area and will be carrying out targeted inspections this year. The British Drilling Association has produced guidance on control measures to protect workers against entanglement in rigs.