Clontarf: Man in critical condition after falling 4.5m at work site at Harbour View Street

Emergency services, including a CareFlight helicopter, attended the scene of a workplace incident on the northern beaches after a house painter fell 4.5m, suffering critcal head injuries.

A house painter has suffered critical head injuries after falling 4.5m onto concrete while working at a house in Clontarf.

A spokesman from NSW Ambulance said paramedics were called to Harbour View St just before 9.30am, following reports that a man in his 30s had fallen.

He said three crews were sent to the scene and a CareFlight helicopter had landed nearby at Balgowlah Golf Club. A doctor and critical care paramedic worked to stablise the man.

“First reports are that a man fell approximately 4m onto concrete and has head injuries,” he said.

“He is conscious, but in quite a serious condition.”

Initial reports were that the man had fallen from scaffolding or a ladder.

However ambulance officers at the scene told the Manly Daily that the man was a painter and had somehow slipped off the flat roof of a garage where he was trying to remove paint from a wall above him. They estimated he fell 4.5m.

They said the man was semi-conscious when they arrived but had been intubated and was on his way to Royal North Shore Hospital in an ambulance with police escort.

CareFlight said its clinical team provided ongoing treatment for the man as he was transported in a critical condition.

NSW Ambulance Inspetor Mark hayes said the man had suffered a “significant head injury”. “Paramedics did a great job in stabilising him on scene before he was taken to Royal North Shore Hospital for further treatment.”

“Workplace injuries can have tragic consequences and we urge people to always take care while on the job - circumstances can change in an instant.”

Safe Work NSW is expected to investigate the incident.

Emergency services protect the privacy of a man who suffered head injuries after falling from a flat roof garage. Picture: Jim O'Rourke.