Blackburn firm fined after forklift driver crushed to death

The company admitted breaching health and safety laws

A lighting firm has been fined after an employee was crushed to death when his forklift truck overturned after it hit an overhead steel beam.

MK Illumination (UK) Ltd, from Blackburn, was fined £53,360 at Preston Magistrates Court after admitting breaching health and safety laws.

The court heard the forklift truck driver was moving pallets when the mast hit a low beam.

He got trapped underneath and died from his injuries.

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation found there were no hazard markings to highlight overhead obstructions.

'Limited headroom'

The traffic routes on site required forklift trucks to travel under a number of overhead structural beams which only had a small clearance gap between the mast of the trucks at their lowest setting and the beams, HSE said.

MK Illumination (UK) Ltd of Witton Business Park, Preston Old Road, admitted breaching Section 2(1) of the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974.

HSE inspector Anthony Banks said: "The company's system of work was not safe."

It operated within tight margins and relied on employees to remember to lower the forks to their lowest position when travelling underneath the overhead beams, he said.

Mr Banks said MK Illumination (UK) Ltd had not only failed to physically mark the overhead beams with a "prominent warning of limited headroom" but also failed to carry out risk assessments of the traffic routes.

"When this was done after the incident, the revised traffic routes avoided the low overhead beams altogether," he said.

In addition to the fine the company was also ordered to pay £7,880 costs.

The firm manufactures festive lights and lighting for public spaces including in Manchester Arndale Centre and Cardiff Castle as well as clients in Germany, Denmark and Dubai.

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