The Sheffield Crown Court in a recent hearing announced UK Coal Mining Ltd guilty of seriously violating health and safety laws, resulting in the death of four miners in different episodes at their premises.
The company was found guilty of four violations of Section 2(1) and three violations of Section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. It severely punished the company with £1.2 million for the death of the workers, due to their health and safety failures.
Prior to the verdict, the Court heard on how UK Coal Mining Ltd had blundered in their duty, which resulted in four deaths. Trevor Steeples passed away on June 19, 2006 at the Daw Mill mine, Nottinghamshire after he was suffocated due to scarce oxygen, while he was working at the mine and exposed to large amounts of methane.
Not even a month after this fatal incident, Paul Hunt a miner was killed on August 6 while working at the same Daw Mill site after he fell from a badly conserved underground lorry-type vehicle into the track of the train, which was moving. UK Coal Mining Ltd admitted to having botched in swapping the decomposing system as well as failing to avert hazardous man riding on the vehicle.
On January 17, 2007, Anthony Garrigan, a miner was killed at the Daw Mill premises while he was helping out his co-workers in fixing rock bolts in order to support a subway wall at its place. He was pressed under the over 100-ton coal and gravel load which fell on him due to it being ineffectively held. The part of tunnel had seen a number of fall cases in the past. Viewing this UK Coal Mining Ltd should have presented a secure support arrangement, which it did not.
On November 3, the same year, Paul Milner a miner, breathed his last while working at Welbeck mine, located at East Midlands. Mr Milner was trying to mount extra rooftop supports so that the tools could be rescued from the exposed seam of coal in the quarry, which had stopped manufacturing. He died after being crushed under the almost 90 tonnes of rock that fell due to the rooftop collapsing.
UK Coal Mining Ltd had decided upon guidelines to deliver a secure working environment, however the guidelines were not properly imposed by them.
Courses accredited by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health – click IOSH Managing Safely – provide a valuable resource to assist companies in training staff to be aware of the proper health and safety procedures for all kinds of workplace situations.