Tyrone company fined £130,000 over employee’s death

A DUNGANNON company has been fined £130,000 after admitting a breach in health and safety legislation that resulted in the death of an employee nearly four years ago.

Phillip Moore (38), a shift manager for Westland Horticulture Limited, died after sustaining fatal injuries in an incident at their production site at Granville Industrial Estate on June 18, 2020.

He had been struck by an industrial loading shovel that was being operated by another employee in the yard area.

Following an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSENI), Westland Horticulture Limited was today fined at Dungannon Crown Court.

The Dungannon-based company had pleaded guilty to a single health and safety offence at an earlier court hearing.

HSENI Major Investigation Team Inspector, Lee Dougan, said Mr Moore’s death was “completely preventable”.

The inspector said, “Vehicles at work continue to be a significant cause of fatal and major injuries in Northern Ireland. In the last ten years, 34 people have lost their life through workplace transport incidents and 162 people were seriously injured.

“Effective control measures need not be complicated and detailed advice on managing workplace transport risks is readily available to employers.

“This tragic death was completely preventable. HSENI will not hesitate to take enforcement action to ensure workplace transport risks are appropriately managed.”

The investigation established that Mr Moore was struck by one of the loading shovels transporting raw material across the production site. It was found that Westland Horticulture Limited failed to take reasonably practicable steps to ensure the safety of employees.

Enforcement action was taken by Health and Safety Inspectors following the incident to ensure steps were taken to protect employees and other persons working on the site in proximity to moving vehicles.

The principles of managing workplace transport fall into three main areas namely ‘safe site’ which ensures effective segregation of vehicles from pedestrians, ‘safe vehicle’ which considers the most appropriate vehicle for the task and environment and ‘safe driver’ which focuses on the competence and behaviour of those who operate vehicles.