Roller driver’s battle to save life of worker

Operator of excavator was struck by heavy machine

THE driver of a giant roller choked with emotion as he told a fatal accident inquiry how he battled to save the life of a digger-driver colleague who was hit by his heavy machine during work on a power-line project.

The excavator operator, David McClorey, 31, from Stranraer, Wigtownshire, died during work to construct a track as part of Scottish and Southern Energy’s Beauly to Denny powerline project.

Roller driver Paul Cooper, 44, said Mr McClorey had become “somehow trapped” as they prepared to transfer fuel from the roller to the digger near Kinbuck, Perthshire.

He said it had been decided to use diesel from the roller to allow the excavator to keep working after it ran short.

He said a bowser, that would normally be used to refill the excavator, was not due to arrive on site until the next day.

Mr Cooper, who gave his address as Jedburgh, Roxburghshire, told the inquiry, at Stirling Sheriff Court, that he was the “ganger”, on the job, and apart from Mr McClorey the only other person at the remote site at the time of the accident was a forestry worker.

He said: “David McClorey was a plant operator and I was his supervisor. “He was a good operator, David. “He would construct the track, and I’d follow up behind to compact the stone.”

Mr Cooper said that on the day of the accident, April 11 2012, he had let his own line manager know that Mr McClorey would be needing fuel at some point during the day, but there was none on site.

He said: “Later, David said he’d take some fuel out of the roller. I can’t remember whose idea it was. It’s not a normal thing but it is done on the tracks when plant’s needing fuel and there’s no fuel available – no one’s ever told us not to do it. The excavator machine has a hose and you just lower the hose

r‘ I olled him over and there was swelling on his neck and I realised he’d been caught between the two machines

into the tank of the machine you’re taking fuel out of, and it sucks it out.”

Mr Cooper said he reversed his Bomag Single Drum Roller towards the Komatsu tracked excavator, which was positioned close to a “little lip” in the track, about 10 to 19 centimetres high, where one section met another.

He said Mr McClorey was out of his machine, guiding him back.

He said: “I wasn’t using my mirrors, I was turned round in my seat, looking over my shoulder, with constant eyesight on David.

“He gave me a ‘high five’ sign to stop, and I turned away from him to put the machine in the stop position, and as I turned round there was a slight movement in the machine. It kind of rocked backwards as if it had come off the edge of the stones.

“When I turned back there was no visual of David.

“I moved it forwards straight away, then I turned and looked for David.

“I’m not 100 per cent clear if I saw David before he fell to the ground or not.

“I jumped out of the machine and ran round, and when I came round the other side of the machine I saw David.”

Clearly emotional, he continued: “He was lying on the ground face down.

“I rolled him over and there was swelling round his neck and his cheek and I realised he had been caught somehow between the two machines – that was the first thing that came to my head.”

Mr Cooper said he dialled 999 and performed CPR on Mr McClorey until paramedics arrived “10 to 20 minutes” later.

An ambulance and an air ambulance were scrambled, but Mr MrClorey died at the scene.

The inquiry, before Sheriff William Gilchrist, heard that the principle contractor on the project was Balfour Beatty, while Mr McClorey and Mr Cooper were working for sub-contractors RJT Excavations Ltd. TEGAN Kerr, 14, and Elliot Christie, 12, got on their bikes to try out the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome as part of a legacy event of the Commonwealth Games.

The pupils’ school, Greenfaulds High, Cumbernauld, won the session because of its work with education programme Game On Scotland.

Alison Drever, of Education Scotland, said “Greenfaulds High School’s science activities are just one example of how schools across Scotland created exciting and relevant learning opportunities for children and young people.”