Teenage victims of forklift peril
Teenage victims of forklift peril
Evidence that dangerous machines and teenage workers do not mix have been demonstrated in three separate safety prosecutions this month. In February 2003, Timothy Whitton, aged 19 and his brother Stephen Whitton, aged 18, climbed on forklift at London firm Premier Storage. The brothers, who were employed at a neighbouring firm, suffered serious injuries when the forklift, driver by Premier employee Lee Smith, overturned. Timothy Whitton suffered a broken back, a broken right femur and dislocations to several of his toes, three of which were subsequently amputated. Stephen Whitton suffered a broken neck and smashed vertebrae. Lee Smith was fined £1,000 after a hearing this month at Croydon Crown Court. In a second case, teenage security guard Travers Clarke was fined £260 at Leeds Magistrates' Court after a delivery driver was injured in a March 2005 incident. Mr Clarke, then aged 19, agreed to use a forklift to unload from a lorry a consignment of cardboard used to make printed packaging. A pallet fell from the forks onto the 63-year-old delivery driver, fracturing his pelvis, foot and ribs, and causing spinal injuries. Mr Clarke had received no training and had been instructed by both the company whose site he was guarding and his employer, White Knight Security, not to use any work equipment on site. HSE Inspector Kathryn Wells, who carried out the investigation said: 'This case demonstrates all too clearly what can happen when an inexperienced and untrained driver gets behind the wheel of a forklift truck.' Teenager Anthony Gary Halpin was both the forklift driver and the victim of a related accident. David James Prosser, Director of DJP Poultry Handling Services Ltd, was fined £2,000 and told to pay costs of £1,555 at Ludlow Magistrates' Court following an incident in which the 17-year-old suffered fractures to his arm, wrist and hand when they became trapped in the forklift. Speaking after the case HSE investigating inspector Janice Dale said: 'The forklift truck was being operated by an untrained, unsupervised, 17-year-old driver. He had been employed by the company as a poultry handler and it was part of his job to drive forklift trucks although he had not attended any formal, approved training course. If he had, this incident could have been avoided.'
- HSE news releases on the Premier Storage, White Knight Security and DJP Poultry Handling Services Ltd incidents.
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