An accident in which a 19-year-old died after falling six floors through a ventilation shaft should have been prevented, an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has concluded.
Natalie Prince, the HSE inspector who oversaw the investigation, said that while falls from height continue to be the biggest causes of workplace fatalities, “this was a wholly avoidable incident that led to the death of a young man”.
Renols Lleshi, 19, was working for Jerram Falkus Construction, removing scaffolding from the roof garden of a block of flats being built in Ealing, London, in July 2023.
The investigation found that a ventilation shaft had been inadequately covered with a sheet of plasterboard and roofing foam. The teenager stepped onto the shaft, unaware that the covering was insufficient, and fell six floors to his death.
It was also revealed that the company failed to conduct routine inspections of the roof garden area, which meant the insufficient covering went undetected, with workers given no warning of the hazard.
Jerram Falkus Construction Ltd pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. It was fined £42,200 at City of London Magistrates’ Court on 19 March.
