CCTV captures horrific moment welder crushed while working at Sunderland shipyard

David Vinsome crushed between an excavation bucket and a fabrication table at Pallion Shipyard on October 18, 2022.

The 37-year-old, from North Shields, sustained multiple rib fractures as well as internal injuries, including an abdominal wall burst.

Midland Steel Traders Ltd was fined £100,000 for its role in the incident following an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

At the time of the incident, welders were using an overhead gantry crane and a forklift truck in tandem to rotate a large excavator bucket.

Vinsome was crushed as he tried to attach chains from the overhead crane to the bucket while the forklift began the lifting operation, unaware of his position behind it.

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In a victim personal statement, Vinsome described the physical and emotional toll the incident has had on him.

“When I did come home, I was in bed for about a month before I tried to get down the stairs,” he said.

“My partner is a NHS nurse, so she helped a lot.

“I am still suffering a lot of pain with my shoulder. I have a daughter and I cannot do the school run anymore or take her out for meals or ice cream.

“I am worried about getting back to work. I don’t know when that will be or how I will manage.

“I don’t think I will go back to welding.”

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The HSE investigation found that Midland Steel Traders Ltd failed to ensure the lifting activity was properly planned by a competent person or carried out safely.

The company did not produce a lifting plan or establish a safe system of work for the operation, resulting in a breakdown of communication among the multiple operators involved.

HSE inspector Matthew Dundas commented on the importance of proper planning for lifting operations.

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He said: “Lifting operations can often put people at great risk, as well as incurring great costs when they go wrong.

“It is therefore important to properly resource, plan and organise lifting operations so they are carried out in a safe manner.

“Had that been done in this case then Mr Vinsome wouldn’t have been so seriously injured.

“HSE provides detailed guidance on lifting operations including the importance on how they should be properly resourced, planned and organised, to enable them to be carried out in a safe manner.”

Midland Steel Traders Ltd, based at Portobello Industrial Estate, Shadon Way, Chester-le-Street, pleaded guilty to breaching Sections 2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

The company was fined £100,000 and ordered to pay £4,916 in costs at Newcastle Magistrates Court on February 13, 2025.