04.12.2013
HSE responds to IPAF letter
Following last week’s formal letter from IPAF’s chief executive Tim Whiteman to Esther McVey - the UK minister for employment with responsibility for the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) - asking about the length of time taken to report on the fatal boom accident at the Kimberly depot near Heathrow, London, Vertikal.net asked the HSE for a comment.
A spokesman for the HSE said: "Our investigation into this incident is ongoing. Like all HSE investigations, it is a criminal one, and therefore it would not be appropriate to comment further at this stage. It is important to stress though that IF our investigations reveal information that we felt necessary to publish - for example if we felt workers' were at risk - we would take action, including alerting duty holders at the earliest opportunity."
We understand that the HSE’s current line of enquiry is whether the machine was calibrated incorrectly which could have allowed it to be extended to a position in which it became unstable. The Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL) has been carrying out a detailed technical examination of the control system to investigate this scenario.
The HSE is also represented on IPAF’s Strategic Forum for Plant Safety and at its meeting on 3rd September the HSE representative advised the meeting that if the investigation reveals any information that needs to be shared with the industry to prevent harm, it will produce a safety alert that would be discussed with IPAF and other industry bodies prior to release. The matter was not raised again at the Forum’s meeting on 18th November.
Click here to see original report - IPAF takes HSE to task .
Vertikal Comment
While some form of communication from the HSE is always welcome, it does not answer the main point of Tim Whiteman’s letter – WHY is it taking so long?
It is now six months since the tragic accident and we are no further forward. Speed is of the essence with accident reports and the HSE needs to understand that this is the most important part of the process. Unfortunately the mention of ‘criminal investigations’ means nothing is likely to appear for several years……
This case highlights a major failing in the UK’s attitude to such events, where the chances of conducting a successful criminal prosecution takes precedence over all else. This must be changed to an approach that is more focused on learning the lessons of such incidents and communicating openly with the industry as a whole.
I am afraid I am just an ordinary person. I am not in a position to know more about this problem than the HSE do.
It must be really difficult for the HSE when everyone else knows more than they do.
But I do wonder why those who claim that the HSE are useless and that the HSE are taking too long don't for the sake of all us ordinary people devote their expert, undoubtedly qualified time to working for the HSE. Surely no one would criticise the HSE on this unless they were more qualified than they are?!!
Would they?
Tmayes
Or what they could do is take a leaf out of the aviation industry books and hurry up with a cause for these incidents so we can learn from them and sort any faults out if any with the machine, what if this type of machine has a generic fault and another machine goes over killing another good guy??
Who cares if there is criminal charges to come in the future lets make everything public ASAP so we can all learn from it and prevent it from happening again.
Tristam, I don't mind you thinking I'm wrong. Guess what I think you are!!
You seem to want the HSE to just make a decision to your timetable irrespective of whether it is accurate or relevant. What is the point in that?
Something's take time to get right, to make sure they are complete and indeed useful going forward.
A quick result is not always a good result. But an accurate result is useful to everyone.
I am glad the HSE are taking their time. I hope they do not give in to pressure just to say something because parts of the industry want to debate it post report!
The HSE are in a no win situation. People are moaning they haven't got the report out yet. Once the report is out the same people will moan about the report!!
Tmayes
Confused I think your wrong, I'd rather them come up with a answer as quick as possible cos this will probably save more incidents like this, it could be a fault with the machine and if it's made public hopefully it will make other operators aware of this fault, stringing these investigations out in the 21st century is unacceptable.
Or perhaps the HSE should just put out any old report before they have fully completed it just so people don't have to wait to read something.
Personally if they were investigating something that involved me or my family I would want them to complete it fully before reporting anything.
Time does not represent useless! For example suppose this tragedy was caused by an intermittent fault. Would you want them to try it a couple of times, not replicate the fault, so conclude there is nothing wrong. Great right up to the next accident!!
Tmayes
The HSE are bloody useless, it's a dinosaur of a organisation,
The air accident investigation branch (AAIB) will have a statement of what happened to the helicopter in Glasgow within a few weeks, but the HSE takes years just to give any clue to what happened with a incident, time they sorted their house out.