Kane Constructions Pty Ltd fined after Werribee worksite injury
A Melbourne construction company faced fines of almost $1.5 million after a disoriented escapee from a Werribee aged care home entered their worksite where he tripped and fell.
West
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A Melbourne construction company has narrowly avoided a $1.5 million fine after an elderly man wandered onto its Werribee construction site and injured his head.
Documents released by Werribee Magistrates’ Court on Thursday detail how the man, a resident of St Vincent’s Care Services in Werribee, left the centre on March 10, 2018, without telling the staff where he was going.
Staff noticed his absence and reported him missing, and his distressed family searched the surrounding area before finding him down the road on a block of land where the Wyndham Medical Services Centre was being built.
The man had entered the site through a 40m gap in the perimeter fence before he tripped over a piece of equipment and hit his head, the court heard.
He was rushed to hospital by ambulance where he received treatment for his injuries.
On Thursday, Geoffrey Purcell, director of Kane Constructions Pty Ltd, faced the court where the company pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to ensure members of the public were not exposed to risk.
Kane Constructions, which has offices in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Canberra and the Sunshine Coast, faced fines of up to $1.42 million under workplace safety laws.
Magistrate Mike Wardell said the gap in the fence had been there for some time and the accident could have been avoided.
But he said the company had a previously unblemished safety record and fined it $15,000 plus court costs of $4625.
“Obviously the legislation is there for a purpose, it’s there to protect the public generally,” Mr Wardell said.
“It was a lapse in attention to detail by the company in having the 40 metre gap that gave rise to the accident … I would think the company would have learnt from this.”
No conviction was recorded against the company.
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