A buidling firm has been fined for breaching work and construction regulaltions after a worker was seriously injured at work.
The 48-year-old was working at a site in Ruskin Road, Tottenham, on September 14 when a newly-built first floor, weighing some 1.6 tonnes, collapsed.
The labourer was working on the floor and fell three metres to the ground.
He sustained extensive breaks to his bones in his lower leg and underwent a major operation and a skin graft.
A colleague at ground level narrowly missed being hit by the falling concrete blocks.
The incident has left the man unable to walk properly, leaving him out of work.
Cosmos Builders 88 Ltd, Of Elm Park Road, Leyton, was investigated by the Health and Satefy Executive (HSE) and found the collapse was "inevitable" after material on the floor was seven times the safe capacity.
Prosecuting the firm at Westminster Magistrates' Court yesterday, the HSE found that there were serious flaws in construction work and numerous risks to employees working at height on site.
Cosmos Builders 88 Ltd, pleaded guilty to two seperates breaches and was ordered to pay a £6,000 fine and £4,000 in costs.
HSE Inspector, Keith Levart said, "Both offences were caused because the Cosmos Builders instructed workers to undertake tasks that they knew to be unsafe, but were unwilling to halt the work.
"In terms of the collapse, the firm cut corners by not carrying out the first-floor work to the accepted standard and then allowed it to become grossly overloaded.
"As a result, a casual labourer has suffered an injury that may prevent him from returing to manual employment for a considerable time.
Mr Levart also added: "Cosmos Builders 88 Ltd did not pay enough attention to the tasks being undertaken and failed to fully appreciate the risks involved".
London has the highest number of recorded fatalities in the construction sector, than in any other region of the UK.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article