A worker employed to clear out an industrial chicken shed lost his arm after it became trapped in unguarded machinery.
Mike Aubry, 27, of Bradninch, near Exeter, was working at Millard Poultry Ltd at Little Acre, Lower Godney, Wells, when the incident happened on 4 December, 2010.
In a prosecution by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), Yeovil Magistrates heard that Mr Aubrey was employed by a contractor to wash out the building using a pressure washer powered by the driveshaft of a tractor.
The driveshaft was not fully guarded and as he moved he was caught by the unguarded part of the machine. His arm had to be amputated at the scene.
Millard Poultry Ltd, of Little Acre, Lower Godney, Wells, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and Regulation 11 of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 in relation to the incident. The company was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £5,000 in costs.