Overloaded racking accident lands £30,000 fine

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A COUNTY Antrim firm was fined £30,000 after two people, one of whom was an employee, suffered serious injuries when an overloaded racking system fell on them.

McAuley Precision Limited in Ballymoney, pleaded guilty to three health and safety breaches at Antrim Crown Court, when the two people sustained serious injuries after stainless steel tubes / pipes fell on them from an overloaded Cantilever racking system. Both individuals suffered a number of serious crush injuries in relation to the incident.

HSENI Inspector Lee Dougan said, “The investigation found that the racking was substantially overloaded prior to the accident. The company also failed to make a suitable and sufficient risk assessment regarding the loading of the racking. The maximum safe working load and design configuration for any racking installation should be conspicuously displayed and never exceeded. Racking should always be used in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.

“This incident was entirely foreseeable and could have been avoided if simple control measures had been put in place.”