Firm owner denies climb in tank rule after pig feed deaths

Nathan Walker and Gavin Rawson are thought to have been overcome by carbon dioxide

A company owner accused of manslaughter over the death of two workers who drowned in a tanker of pig feed said no-one would ever be asked to climb in.

Nathan Walker and Gavin Rawson died at the Greenfeeds Limited site in Leicestershire when they were overcome by fumes and then drowned in 2016.

Gillian Leivers denied cutting corners for profit.

Leicester Crown Court previously heard the tanker was half full of waste food, beer and fizzy drinks.

Mr Walker, 19, was overcome by carbon dioxide and Gavin Rawson, 35, ran to the tanker to help but he too drowned.

Both men were cut free and treated by emergency services but were pronounced dead at the scene in Normanton on 22 December.

The defendants

Greenfeeds Limited is accused of two charges of corporate manslaughter.

Gillian Leivers, one of the owners of the company, is accused of two charges of gross negligence manslaughter.

The company has already pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the health and safety of its employees. Mrs Leivers and her husband Ian Leivers, who co-owns the company, deny a related charge of allowing Greenfeeds to commit this offence.

Mr and Mrs Leivers are both 59 and from Fosse Road, East Stoke in Nottinghamshire.

John Harrison QC, for the prosecution, previously told the jury that staff regularly got into the tankers to clean them.

Ms Leivers told the court tankers did not need to be cleaned inside, but if they did, it was by a high pressure hose operated from a hatch at the top of the tanker.

She repeatedly denied ever asking anyone to get inside any tanker and accused witnesses, who claimed it was regular practice, of lying.

"If I knew anyone would get in a tank I would just confess. I would say I am guilty, I would have said it years ago," she said.

"I wouldn't want to put the families through all this, terrible, terrible thing we've all had to go through, and that is honest."

'Nobody has told the truth'

Ms Leivers also denied being in charge of Greenfeeds when her husband and co-owner Ian Leivers was away, including on the day of the deaths.

The court heard a chart produced by Greenfeeds in 2016 showed Mr Leivers at the top of the company, Ms Leivers beneath him, office staff beneath her and the yard staff at the bottom.

But Ms Leivers said her work was confined to invoices, speaking to customers and cleaning the office and toilets.

"Something happened that day that we will never know. We will never find out and nobody has told the truth. If I knew I would tell you," she said.

In police bodycam footage - a transcript of which was read out in court - she said "somebody will get into the top" of the tanker and use a pressure washer to clean the inside.

In court, she claimed she meant "on to the top" and said she misspoke because at the time she "couldn't think straight".

No prior training

The court also heard following a death at the company in 2005, over which it was prosecuted in 2006, a health and safety consultancy firm was appointed.

A second firm replaced the first but it ended its relationship with Greenfeeds because an invoice was unpaid and "nobody paid any attention" to health and safety, the jury was told.

Ms Leivers said that was not true and that there was a health and safety manager at the company who revised all the relevant documents.

But she told the court the manager had no prior health and safety training, nor did Greenfeeds provide any.

Addressing Ms Leivers, Mr Harrison said: "No-one took any notice of health and safety. Every corner was cut that could be cut, to make money for you and your husband."

"No, definitely not. We re-mortgaged the house, invested money all the time for new machinery," she replied.

The trial continues.