East Dunbartonshire Council fined

Council fined over refuse collection accident.

East Dunbartonshire Council has been fined £13,500 at Glasgow Sheriff Court in connection with the death in January 2007 of a 35-year old employee who was struck and killed by a Council waste recycling vehicle as it reversed in a street in Torrance.

An HSE official explained: "Employers of waste collectors should ensure that their kerbside workers are fully trained to safely assist their drivers to reverse and avoid collision with pedestrians. A safe system of work should be drawn up setting out how communication and control between kerbside collectors and the driver can be reliably achieved.

I cannot stress enough, how challenging a work environment the streets of our towns and cities are for this important group of workers and how a simple mistake can have tragic consequences."

Article created by Editor. (info@safetynetscotland.co.uk)