Firm fined after skylight fall
Fines totalling almost £70,000 have been handed out after a construction worker suffered serious head injuries in a workplace fall.
Robert Stephens, 40, was working for his father, Stanley, alongside other Longhope Welding Company employees to raise the roof line of the Woodgate Sawmill building, in Coleford, when he fell five metres and landed on the concrete floor below.
The two firms pleaded guilty to health and safety violations at Gloucester Magistrates' Court.
Woodgate Sawmills was fined £13,320 and ordered to pay £14,443 in costs.
Stanley Stephens, meanwhile, was hit with a £26,660 fine and an order to pay costs of £14,443.
Health and Safety Executive inspector Annette Walker said: "This incident highlights the extremely serious risks posed by working at heigh if adequate safety protection measures are not in place."