A sawmiller has been ordered to pay a hefty fine of £87,000 following a tragic workplace accident in which an employee suffered the loss of a foot.
Balcas Timber Ltd, a sawmiller based in Northern Ireland, has been penalised with a fine of £87,000 by Dungannon Crown Court following a workplace incident that resulted in the amputation of an employee’s foot. The Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSENI) released a statement indicating that the employee was operating on a movable track at the entrance to a timber treatment chamber at Balcas Timber Ltd in Ballinamallard, County Fermanagh, on 29 October 2023 when the incident occurred.
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He was rescued from the equipment by the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service and subsequently flown by air ambulance to the hospital, where his right foot was surgically amputated due to the severity of the injury. HSENI inspector Kevin Campbell stated that the accident was entirely preventable, and the consequences could have been significantly worse.
The company had previously pleaded guilty to two health and safety offenses. An investigation by HSENI revealed that the limit switches on the machinery were not maintained in a safe condition, leading to recurring defects that hindered the safe operation of the equipment. At the time of the incident, the employee was attempting to reset various limit switches associated with the track after the process stalled during the treatment sequence..
The investigation found that production operators frequently bypassed safety features by using a large metal pin to hold down control levers on the control panel. This practice allowed the machine to remain in “ON” or “LIVE” mode while the operators attempted to reset the limit switches. As a result, the moveable track could move unexpectedly while the operators were in close proximity to it.
Prosecutors from the PPS’s Fraud & Departmental Section collaborated closely with HSENI to build a strong case for prosecution.
“This incident could have been easily avoided,” said Major Investigation Team Inspector Kevin Campbell. “The employee suffered serious, life-altering injuries; however, the outcome could have been far worse.
“Employers must ensure that effective, planned preventive maintenance procedures are in place for work equipment, complemented by pre-start checks conducted by qualified personnel,” he emphasized. “All defective equipment and machinery should not be used until it has been properly repaired or replaced by trained professionals. Safety control devices, such as hold-to-run controls, must not be overridden or disabled, as this can lead to unintended movements of the machinery while an operator is in its path.”
Balcas Timber became part of the Glennon Brothers Group in 2021.
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