Fines over silo accident

Gore: Fines totalling more than $100,000 have been handed down after an electrician was sucked into grain in a silo near Riversdale, in Southland.

Electrical company Austin Bros (1980) was fined $35,000 for failing to take all practicable steps to ensure the safety of its employees.

The farming partnership Mark and Sonia Dillon was fined $69,000 on three charges, including Mr Dillon’s actions in turning on the augur that resulted in the electrician being engulfed.

In a reserved decision in Gore District Court, the defendants were each ordered to pay $5000 in reparation.

Of that $10,000 total, $7000 was awarded to the victim and $3000 to another electrician who got him out of the silo and sounded the alarm. — NZN