Prosecutions

A Moray farming partnership has been fined £13,500 at Elgin Sheriff Court following an incident where a 13-year-old boy fell through the roof of a farm building and sustained serious injuries from which he later died.

The incident happened on 21 August 2006. The stepson of the farm’s junior partner was watching the gutter in the valley between the cattle shed and feed passage roofs being cleared.

He was raised up to roof level in the bucket of a tractor by his stepfather and the boy walked onto the roof. As he walked across the roof he stepped onto a skylight which collapsed. He fell through the skylight, around four-four and a half metres (approximately 13 feet) to the ground and suffered serious injuries from which he later died.

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation into the incident revealed that there was no proper edge protection on the roof and no measures in place to prevent falls through the corrugated asbestos cement sheeting which made up the roof.

The firm pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.

Following the case, the investigating inspector from the HSE said:

“This tragedy should never have happened and could have been prevented if the company had properly assessed the risks of working on a fragile roof and taken steps to prevent falls through the roof. 

“Farmers and those working in agriculture frequently carry out roof work, yet fail to appreciate the risks involved are always substantial. If possible, avoid going on fragile roofs and always keep children clear of high risk activities. If you are planning this type of work should always make sure you have the right equipment to ensure that the work area is strong enough to work from and that guard rails are in place at open edges and suitable access is provided.”