Sawmill fined after worker's leg injured

An East Lothian sawmilling company has been fined after an employee's leg was seriously injured when he was cutting wood.

On 4 April 2008, Grzegorz Krzaczek, originally from Poland, was working with two colleagues at Windymains Timber Ltd to process wooden logs into planks, using a machine called a drop sorter. At the time of the incident, it was common for the drop sorter to jam two or three times a day.

When two planks became stuck in the machine, Mr Krzaczek climbed onto its conveyor belt, kicked the wood that was causing the jam, and unblocked it. However, because the power had not been turned off, as soon as he dislodged the wood, it re-started immediately at full speed.

Mr Krzaczek's leg was dragged into the machine, where it became trapped. The machine stopped running seconds later. It is not clear whether the machine stopped after becoming blocked by another piece of wood, or because a colleague isolated the power.

Mr Krzaczek remained trapped in the machine for approximately one and half hours and had to be freed by firefighters. His left leg was broken in three places and he suffered significant nerve damage.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found Windymains Timber Ltd had failed to assess the risks involved when employees operated the drop sorter and to have a safe procedure in place for clearing blockages. The investigation also showed that dangerous parts of the machine could be accessed by workers, because there was inadequate guarding in place.

Windymains Timber Ltd of Windymains, Humbie, East Lothian pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 at Haddington Sheriff Court on 15 December, the company was fined £20,000. The fine was reduced from £30,000 due to an early guilty plea.

HSE inspector David Stephen said: "This horrific incident caused severe injuries and could very easily have led to the death of Mr Krzaczek.

"It was entirely preventable and simple precautions would have protected workers from the moving parts of the machinery. Had Windymains Timber carried out an effective risk assessment, it would have recognised the guarding in place at the time was simply not good enough."