A worldwide packaging firm has been fined following an explosion at a factory in which two men suffered serious burns.
Gordon Metcalf and another worker, who has not been named, were working for Innovia Films Ltd at its factory in Cumbria when the accident happened in September 2006. The men were clearing debris from a damaged fuse box when a ball of fire shot out from it. Mr Metcalf was initially thought unlikely to survive the explosion. He was in a coma for four weeks and spent a total of five months in hospital. He will never be able to return to work. The other man, however, was able to make a full recovery.
The company was prosecuted by the HSE and the subsequent investigation found that there had been a fire in the fuse box a few hours previous to the incident but live cables had been routed through it to ensure that cooling equipment could continue to operate. Carlisle Crown Court also heard that a suitable risk assessment had not been carried out and that management had allowed the work to go ahead without the electricity supply being isolated.
Innovia Films pleaded guilty to a breach of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and was fined £90,000 as well as being ordered to pay £26,790 in fines.