‘Cavalier’ executive jailed over death in crane fall
Sheriff gives maximum prison term following equipment failure
A PLANT hire boss has been told his attitude to safety was “cavalier” before being jailed for two years over a crane collapse that killed one worker and seriously injured another.
Donald Craig, the 57-year-old manager of Hamilton-based Craig Services and Access Limited, received the maximum custodial penalty after he was found guilty of contravening safety legislation following a 16-day trial.
The firm at the centre of the safety neglect may escape punishment because it was wound up two years ago.
Gary Currie, 39, who was employed to rig up safety nets on construction sites, died after the cherry picker basket he was operating fell 92ft at the Buchanan House office block in Port Dundas Road, Glasgow.
His colleague Alexander Nisbet, then 35, was also in the basket at the time and was seriously injured in the plunge on June 20, 2012.
The firm for whom the pair were working was found guilty of three charges relating to the collapse of a mobile work platform resulting in a £61,000 fine.
Court records show that Craig Services and Access Limited went into liquidation in November, 2014 at Airdrie Sheriff Court after it was unable to pay its debts.
Another company, JM Access Solutions Ltd, was fined £30,000 for its failure to carry out a systematic and detailed thorough examination of the platform.
Mr Currie from Baillieston and Mr Nisbet, a self-employed contractor, were in the basket of the platform removing netting from the facade of the Buchanan House office block when the collapse happened.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) revealed the third main boom section of the crane buckled, causing the platform’s basket to fall to the ground.
The jury also heard how the machine had previously been damaged in May 2011 but was put back into use following checks by JM Access in April 2012 which had been given false assurances by Craig with tragic consequences.
Prosecutor Gary Aitken, head of health and safety division, said: “This incident, which resulted in the death of Gary Currie and caused serious injury to Alexander Nisbet, could have been avoided had Donald Craig and Craig Services & Access Limited heeded advice and taken measures to maintain the platform in a safe condition. At the centre of this all was the decision to instruct this repair. It was a decision that left Gary Currie and Alexander Nisbet exposed to an unacceptable risk and was essentially an accident waiting to happen.”
Health and Safety Executive inspector Graeme McMinn said Craig Services and Access Ltd and Donald Craig were advised by the manufacturer to replace the damaged boom but they chose a much cheaper repair that left the boom in an unsafe condition.
Jailing Craig, Sheriff Petra Collins branded his attitude to safety as “cavalier” and criticised him for his lies about the condition of the equipment.
She said: “In doing all that, Mr Craig gambled with the lives of those using the cherry picker, with fatal consequences.”
‘‘ In doing all that, Mr Craig gambled with the lives of those using the cherry picker, with fatal consequences