£50k in fines given after engineer is fatally struck by tree
Date of alert:
Wednesday, 27 March 2024
Crime Ref:
Force:
Police Service of Northern Ireland
A total of £50,000 in fines was given out to a construction company and Newry, Mourne and Down District Council after an electrical engineer was struck by a falling tree when working.
24-year-old Matthew Campbell, who was an employee of Lagan Construction Limited, was fatally injured when a large, 200-year-old beech tree was uprooted by strong winds during Storm Ali in September 2018.
An investigation carried out by the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSENI) found that the construction company and the council breached health and safety legislation.
The HSENI found that both employers failed to make a suitable and sufficient risk assessment.
The council also failed to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the safety of non-employees, the HSENI said.
