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Construction firm fined after worker's narrow escape

A construction worker defied death after falling four metres from the cage of a 20-tonnes cherry-picker into the path of a moving bus, which then pushed him another 15 metres along the Euston Road.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted national construction firm Galliford Try Construction Limited for serious safety failings which led to Camden worker Leszek Soltysiak suffering severe injuries.

The employee was part of a two-man team brought in by Galliford Try to fix snagging issues at the iconic St. Pancras Renaissance Hotel and Chambers, which had just undergone a £103 million restoration by the company.

Westminster Magistrates' Court heard the firm arranged for two workers from the logistics team to remove tape from the outside of an apartment window on the third floor of the residential block in the early hours of 4 March 2011.

HSE's investigation found the incident could have been avoided if Galliford Try had fulfilled their duty to properly plan and supervise the work.

Galliford Try Construction Limited, of Cowley Business Park, Uxbridge, Middlesex, was fined a total of £12,000 and ordered to pay full costs of £16,459.70 after pleading guilty to two serious breaches of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

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