A director of a family sawmill business in Nottinghamshire died when he was accidentally struck by a JCB wheel loader on the site. Nottingham Crown Court heard Health and Safety Executive investigators found “unsafe practices” when they visited John Brooke Ltd in Widmerpool after dad-of-one Tom Brooke tragically lost his life.
“There were no designated walkways, vehicles were criss-crossing it on a regular basis and what happened was quite clearly a significant risk because every time that vehicle was filled and moving forward the driver, however experienced he was, could not see ahead of him and there was a blind spot at the front of the vehicle.”
“Urgent assistance was called for to provide medical attention but he sadly died. The Crown does not seek to criticise the driver or the deceased but on the failure of the company to devise a safe traffic management system. “There were no signs indicating a pedestrian route and barriers were not in place at the time.” The prosecutor played CCTV of what it said were inadequate health and safety measures on the site at the time.
Another staff member, Adam Hopkins, said: “I could not remember seeing any signs telling pedestrians where to go.”Mr Maxwell-Scott KC read out a victim personal statement made by Jessica Brooke. Mr Brooke’s widow. In it, she said: “Our hearts are broken, the pain is immeasurable and the loss we are suffering no words can describe.
He said: “They are moving and indicate the destruction that has been caused since 2019. This is not a company trying to cut corners or cheat the system, it was actively moving its health and safety forwards.