In the case of July 2020, the court was told that the schoolboy died because the contractor failed to put sufficient safety measures. In July 2020, a 10-year-old boy, She Ryan, entered a construction site in Glasgow.
Source: dailyrecord.co.uk
Then Shea talked to his fellow friends and said he tried to climb down the manhole, but he fell on a ladder during this activity. In the court, the contractor RJ Mcleod admitted his fault and accepted the fact of breaching health and safety laws.
Saud Ul-Hassan, the Prosecutor, spoke in the Glasgow Sheriff’s Court hearing and said that the construction site was in the playpark in the city’s Drumchapel area. According to the Prosecutor, the construction site was fenced through single fencing and breached on many occasions.
Prosecutor said Shea said to his friends that he wanted to go down and started to climb down in the ladder, and eventually, he slipped and fell. There is a 20ft gap between the ladder and the bottom of the manhole.
Just after Shea fell from the ladder, other children raised the alarm, and then Graham Patterson, stepfather of Shea, jumped into the manhole. Immtidely, police were called to the spot.
When police reached the spot, they found Shea lying on his back and his stepfather and neighbours surrounding him. Further Prosecutor added, “When he was fetched from the manhole, he had severe injuries in the head, and he was not breathing, and his body was totally cold”.
One police officer lied down the Shea and tried to give him CPR, and just after them, he was taken to the Royal Children’s Hospital. He could not be saved due to a severe head injury.
Contractor RJ McLeod said that this construction site work under the project to shorten the flooding area in the city. In the court investigation, the jury found that the contractor failed to assess the risks. He doesn’t think about the possibility of a play park, which would attract the children to the construction site.
The construction company was criticised for not protecting the site through the double fence. Also, they need an adequate system to protect or monitor the area.
It is an avoidable accident: Shea’s mother’s Statement
Joanne Ferguson told the media they learned a lesson from the tragedy. She further said, “My son is not here, and that destroys me every day,” she said in a statement.
That avoidable accident has ruined my and my kids’ lives – I sometimes don’t feel human anymore because of the grief.”
Source: Facebook
She further expressed his pain “I just hope this makes them consider site safety everywhere – not just for RJ McLeod but for companies around because the safety of these places is so important.
Wee Shea is missed every second of every day, and his family and friends will always love and miss him.”
In the court hearing, the constructor RJ McLeod also admitted to failing in the proper safety risks. The sentence was secured for later this week. After the court hearing, the company increased the safety measures around the site.
They also put the double fencing measure and manhole cover with the sensors and security cameras installed at the site. Court decided the later date for Shea’s fatal accident inquiry.
