Worker burned by molten metal had unsuitable clothing

Prosecutions and Claims |
12.03.2008

A firm that failed to provide suitable protective clothing has been fined after a worker suffered 12% burns when he was splashed with 450-degree molten metal.

Hereford Galvanizers was prosecuted by the HSE following the accident in June 2006.

The employee was helping with a galvanising operation, where metal items were dipped in a bath of molten zinc, when the hooks suspending two steel joists - each weighing 1165kg - gave way.

The joists plunged back into the dip bath, splashing the employee with the molten zinc. His overalls dissolved and he suffered burns to his chest and upper arms.

HSE inspector Paul Humphries described the work as "extremely hazardous".

"Even the most basic risk assessment would have highlighted the need to supply clothing specifically designed to cope with such high temperature molten metal," he said.

"Routine assessments and maintenance of the lifting equipment may also have shown that the lifting hooks had become inadequate to support that weight."

Hereford Galvanziers pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act for its failure to take reasonable steps to ensure the health and safety of employees.

Hereford magistrates fined the firm £13,000 plus costs of £6,564.