A catalogue of safety failures led to the death of a father-of-two who collapsed in a chemical tank at a Dundee alloy wheel repair company, a court was told.
Steven Conway, 33, was overcome by lethal levels of Dichloromethane vapour as he removed debris from the stripping tank at Diamond Wheels (Dundee) Ltd in Baird Avenue in 2011 a business owned by former Dundee FC director of football Paul Marr.
Dundee Sheriff Court was told the company had not provided adequate respiratory protective equipment or proper ventilation in the container or given adequate information and training to employees about the risks associated with exposure to harmful vapours.
Additionally, it had not maintained a safe work system to be followed by employees chemical stripping alloy wheels and cleaning the tank.
The court heard a 3m-deep container held the chemical stripping tank used for dipping alloy wheels and the only form of ventilation came from the doors being left open.
A chemical known in the trade as EFX Strip was used to strip the wheels and its vapours have a narcotic effect that can cause dizziness and unconsciousness.
The court heard paint-stripping debris built up over a period of time at the bottom of the tank, leading to the solution not working effectively.
Mr Conway, who suffered from asthma, had previously cleaned the tank by leaning into it, using a rake to lift out the debris.
On August 18 2011, Mr Conway, who was not provided with protective clothing but was wearing a mask connected to a filter pack, entered the tank to start removing debris.
Shortly after 1pm, a colleague entered the container and saw Mr Conway, who appeared to be unconscious, slumped against the side of the tank.
After alerting Diamond Wheels director Mr Marr, the two men pulled Mr Conway from the tank and called for an ambulance but he was pronounced dead at Ninewells Hospital at 2.55pm.
A post-mortem revealed chemical burns on Mr Conway’s legs and feet, with the cause of death attributed to inhalation of industrial paint stripper fumes.
Depute fiscal Emma Stewart told the court the findings of a subsequent Health and Safety Executive investigation formed the basis of the charge before the court.
The company admitted a breach of Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 at Baird Avenue between February 1 2011 and August 18 2011
The court was told that Diamond Wheels now has a new stainless steel tank with an overhead ventilation system to extract harmful vapours and uses air-fed breathing apparatus to supply clean air to employees working in the container that houses the chemical-stripping tank.
Defence advocate Gavin Anderson said: “I express publicly in open court that Mr Conway’s tragic death is genuinely and deeply regretted by all associated with the company.
“He had been a friend of Mr Marr for seven years prior to this and was valued not only as an employee but also as a friend.”
Sheriff Alistair Brown deferred sentence until October for the Crown and defence to make written legal submissions in the case.
Addressing Mr Conway’s parents in the public benches, he said: “Nothing that I can say or do will bring him back and I recognise that.
“It is certainly not the case in selecting a fine that I will be in any way seeking to put any kind of value on him or his life.It is important to keep in mind that Mr Conway died as a result of this he’s not to be forgotten in this process.”