Following the death of Andrei-Ionel Hutanu in 2019, Patrick McCarthy was sentenced to 14 months in prison. No scaffolding or other safeguards were in place to prevent falls from the roof. Hutanu, 33, and another man were working at the back of commercial premises in Neasden on August 19, 2019, according to Harrow Crown Court, reports Construction Journal.
Hutanu was assigned to repair a tiled pitched roof, while his coworker was assigned to remove building materials from a flat roof. He was working on it from a roofing ladder when he fell about five metres to the concrete alleyway below. He fractured his neck and suffered other serious head injuries in the fall, and despite being flown to St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington by air ambulance, he died a week later.
According to an HSE investigation, McCarthy was found to have failed to install scaffolding around the perimeter of the building or flat roof where both men were working. McCarthy (doing business as All Care Home Improvements) of Ealing pleaded guilty to safety violations and was sentenced to 14 months in prison.
Following the hearing, HSE Inspector Philip Jordan stated, “This tragic incident could have easily been avoided.” Assessing and planning work at height is critical to ensuring that adequate measures are in place to prevent falls from great heights.”
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