Church fined after pensioner died in fall
An archdiocese of the Roman Catholic church in Scotland has been fined for breaching health and safety regulations which led to the death of a pensioner who fell 50ft from a church loft.
Christopher Duffy, 81, was found lying beside a broken ceiling tile on the floor of the Sacred Heart Church in Cumbernauld in June 2016. Mr Duffy was a volunteer at the church and a key holder and he had a duty to open up the church in the mornings.
Sheriff Morag Shankland told Airdrie Sheriff Court yesterday that contractors had previously warned of a safety risk in the loft space and advised that access to it should be restricted and the keys secured.
But the sheriff said: “The offender in this case failed to put in place sufficient control measures to secure the keys and thereby prevent access to the loft space.”
The trustees of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Glasgow Trust pleaded guilty to breaches under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and were fined £13,400.
The sheriff said that Mr Duffy and his wife were loyal members of the church for nearly 30 years.
The parish priest, Father Campbell, had a conversation with Mr Duffy on the morning of June 6 about piping in the loft. Mr Duffy’ s wife later called the chapel house because her husband had failed to return home and a housekeeper subsequently found Mr Duffy lying on the church floor with no sign of life.
A spokesman for the archdiocese said: “The archdiocese wishes to express once more its regret and sorrow at the death of Mr Duffy."