A BRICK manufacturer has been fined £13,500 after a worker nearly died falling from an oven.

David Snow, 56, sustained a fractured skull, broken vertebrae in his neck and several breaks to his left leg in the incident at the Wienerberger plant near Bishop Auckland, County Durham on January 18 last year.

He has undergone four major operations and more than a year later, Mr Snow, a former keen golfer and dog-walker, relies on crutches or a wheelchair to move about.

Wienerberger admitted breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act after they were prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) at Darlington Magistrates’ Court today (Wednesday, May 15).

The court heard Mr Snow, a kiln operator at the now-mothballed site in Eldon Lane, was standing on top of the large oven trying to release the exit door that had been jamming half-open since the Christmas shutdown.

As he tried to free the jam, he lost his balance and fell almost three metres to the floor.

The HSE said the firm failed to provide any safety measures to control the risks of falling from height and failed to provide a safe system of work for releasing the jammed oven door.

Wienerberger, who are based in Cheshire, were fined £13,500 and ordered to pay £4,190.70 costs.

After the hearing, HSE Inspector Michael Kingston said: “Mr Snow suffered major, life changing injuries as a result of this incident, but there was a real possibility that his fall could have been fatal.

“Falls from height continue to be the main cause of workplace fatalities even though simple and inexpensive measures can be implemented to avoid putting employees at risk.”

Speaking at his home in Crook, County Durham, Mr Snow, who has worked in brickworks for more than 30 years, said: “It had a massive impact on the lives of me and my wife, I am now practically housebound.

“It makes me angry because it could all have been avoided for the sake of an hour’s work to fix the problem.”

Harald Schwarzmayr (CORR), managing director of Wienerberger, said the firm accepted the court’s judgment, and steps were taken immediately afterwards to ensure the accident could not be repeated.

He said policies had been in place at the time, and a full review was subsequently held at all sites.

Mr Schwarzmayr said: “We are continually working to improve health and safety performance, this needs our constant attention to ensure standards are maintained.”