A Southland company will have to pay nearly $700k in fines and reparations after a truck driver was run over in Bluff in early 2017.
McLellan Freight Ltd was contracted to load and unload palm kernel extract at a Bluff warehouse. The handling of this cargo was outsourced to trucks and drivers from two trucking firms, Transport Services Southland Ltd and Herberts Transport Ltd.
One of those contracted drivers was struck and killed by a reversing front-end loader as he stood behind his own truck in February 2017.
A WorkSafe investigation found that McLellan Freight required a more effective traffic management system and that it should have consulted the contracted trucking firms to mitigate risks.
“Clear separation of workers and moving vehicles is an absolute must in workplaces. Designated safe zones for people, alongside bollards or barriers to control the traffic flow are cost-effective ways to keep safe,” said WorkSafe’s acting national manager of investigations Catalijne Pille.
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“Too much emphasis was placed on workers being vigilant, as opposed to businesses managing risks by preventing dangerous situations for workers. More could and should have been done by way of traffic management to ensure a safe system of work.”
Suggested measures to reduce risk included a dedicated spotter to guide drivers, a stop line or safety cone, and the use of reversing cameras, proximity sensors and blue light indicators on vehicles.
McLellan Freight Ltd was charged under two sections of the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and fined $577,500 and ordered to pay reparations of $115,896 at the Invercargill District Court this morning.