Company fined £8000 over labourer's building site fall

A LABOURER broke two ribs after falling off the edge of a temporary staircase on a city building site after a colleague removed a guardrail, a court heard.

David Tourish, 38, from Moodisburn in North Lanarkshire, was working for Walker Group (Scotland) Ltd on a new-build house in Ravelston Dykes.

At Edinburgh Sheriff Court yesterday, the firm pleaded guilty to breaking safety regulations and was fined 8000.

A temporary staircase with half landings had been put in while the house was built, and there was a gap between one of the half landings and the wall.

The gap had been protected by a guardrail, but two days before Mr Tourish's fall, it was removed by a joiner to allow him access to a wall.

On November 21, 2009, Mr Tourish fell nearly three metres through the gap to the landing.

Mr Tourish was taken to hospital with bruised kidneys and two fractured ribs. He was off work for three months.