A man who fell six metres through a fragile skylight could have escaped injury if the site on which he was working had been properly protected with edge protection and walkovers.
Przemyslaw Borkiewicz of Mutley, Plymouth, was working on a garage in Saltash on December 12th 2012 without adequate safety equipment.
He had no man anchor, the roof had not been fitted with edge protection – either permanent or temporary – and no walkovers were in place over fragile parts of the roof, including several Perspex skylights.
While walking across the roof to pass a bucket to a colleague, Mr Borkiewicz stepped on one of these rooflights, and it gave way.
He fell six metres, sustaining a variety of painful injuries including serious head injuries.
HSE inspector Helena Allum said: “Falls from height are the biggest cause of workplace deaths and it’s crucial that employers make sure work is properly planned, appropriately supervised and that sufficient measures are put in place to protect staff from the risks.”
She added that Mr Borkiewicz was lucky to escape the incident with his life.