The death of a worker crushed by a digger in a Scottish quarry 'could have been avoided' if staff had been properly trained on the vehicle's safety features, an inquiry has ruled.
Pawel Kocik, 34, was working inside a mobile rock crusher at Kishorn Quarry near Lochcarron in the Highlands when he was struck by part of the arm of the excavator and crushed against the wall. He suffered catastrophic injuries to his chest, abdomen, arm and shoulder and died at the scene on May 17 2017.
A fatal accident inquiry has concluded that the incident could have been avoided if the machine's safety control lever – which locks the controls – had been engaged. However, the driver could not recall being trained in its use.
The inquiry heard that Pawel had offered to help his colleague Joseph Morgan set up the rock crusher for the day. Morgan was using the excavator to fix a panel in place. However, the environment was noisy and Morgan couldn't be sure if his instructions had been heard, prompting him to lean out of the excavator.
As he leant from the vehicle to speak to the Polish national, his body or overalls inadvertently caught the joystick that controls the construction vehicle's arm, which then struck Pawel. Sheriff Gary Aitken, presiding, concluded that the safety cut-off would have stopped the arm from moving if it had been engaged.
But Mr Morgan told the inquiry he was "not familiar" with guidance on the cut-offs use at the time, as it had not come up in training under quarry operator Leiths or industry body the Mineral Products Qualification Council (MPQC). He said that he wished he could "turn back time" to undo the death of his "really good friend".
The inquiry ruled that there had been an "apparent weakness" in the exams offered by the MPQC, which trains quarry workers in using heavy machinery. Michael Tetley, a Health and Safety Executive (HSE) inspector, said the MPQC's excavator training "did not appear to address and record the correct use of the safety control lever".
Sheriff Aitken has recommended that the HSE remind quarry operators across the UK about the cut-off to prevent the accident reoccurring. In a written judgement, he said: "The safety control lever should have been used to isolate and 'lock' the excavator controls. The use of the safety control lever any time someone is in close proximity to the excavator while it is idle would seem to be best practice."
Leiths Group has already made several changes to its procedures, modifying its mobile rock crushers so that the set-up Pawel was carrying out is no longer necessary. Leiths, which was fined £130,000 in relation to the incident a year ago, has also installed red warning lights on its excavators so staff know when the vehicles are unsafe to approach.
The MPQC has also pledged to improve its training programmes after Health and Safety Executive inspectors found a "lack of consistency" in how plant drivers were taught about the safety control lever. The MPQC was contacted for comment.
Sheriff Aitken added: "[Pawel] was a young family man who was clearly very well thought of by his employers and colleagues. His untimely death is no doubt still keenly felt by his family."
A Leiths Group spokesperson said: "The Company would again wish to express their condolences to the family and friends of Mr Kocik."
A HSE spokesperson said: “We are carefully considering the issues raised in this report and already talking to the industry about safety improvements. Our thoughts are with the victim’s family and everyone involved in this terrible incident.”
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