A 32-year-old man was killed when the 10-metre ESB pole he was atop collapsed because it was not erected deep enough underground, an inquest has heard.
John Byrne, Cloonfad, Rooskey, Co Roscommon, died a couple of days after the accident at Dublin's St James's Hospital on January 9th, 2004, from severe head injuries. When the accident took place, Mr Byrne was working as a linesman for Integrated Utility Services Ltd (IUS), based in north Co Dublin, which was subcontracted by ESB to carry out work on a pole at Castlereagh Community School in Roscommon, Dublin City Coroner's Court heard yesterday.
In June of this year, IUS pleaded guilty and was fined €50,000 at Roscommon Circuit Court to breaches of the 1989 Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act arising from Mr Byrne's death.
A Health and Safety Authority (HSA) investigation found the pole became unearthed when Mr Byrne cut the second "stay-wire" from atop the pole.
The pole collapsed because it was only implanted two feet underground when it should have been six feet underground, the inquest heard.
The HSA report concluded that when the ESB pole was erected in 1983, it was implanted six feet underground but the ground around the pole had since been reduced during a building project at Castlereagh Community School in 1993.
The HSA report also found that IUS did not have an auxiliary stay-wire in place on the pole when Mr Byrne was working. "If an auxiliary stay was put on, the pole wouldn't have collapsed," Brian Kirwin, solicitor for the Byrne family, told the court.
A statement from Graham Kelly, who was working with Mr Byrne when the accident took place but who was not present in court, said he watched from the ground as the pole jolted and then collapsed at a 45-degree angle.
"As he removed the left stay, the pole gave a jolt . . . It hit the ground very fast," Mr Kelly said in his statement.
A statement from IUS supervisor Les Fletcher said he heard Mr Byrne shout out and then he saw "the pole hit the ground and I saw John hit the pole".
A postmortem report found that Mr Byrne died from brain-stem injury and brain swelling. He also fractured his skull, leg and arm.
A Garda investigation after the accident concluded that Mr Byrne had been wearing full safety equipment when the pole became unearthed.
The jury returned a verdict of accidental death.