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Adam Millichip was less than thirty years old when he lost his life while at work. He was a delivery driver, and on 16th November 2007, he had driven a lorry loaded with pallets of sheet steel. He was waiting by the lorry while a forklift truck unloaded the pallets when one of the pallets struck him on the chest.

The force from the one-tonne pallet crushed his chest and caused major organ failure. The father of one died shortly afterwards.

As it so often happens in tragic accidents such as this one, the subsequent investigation found serious breaches of health and safety regulations on the part of the forklift driver’s employer. HSE found that there were insufficient measures in place to protect drivers during offloading and that the risks involved were not fully understood.

Adequate planning is essential, as it allows companies to identify potential risks and the measures that can help to prevent them. The HSE provides information on how to carry out risk assessments, and health and safety training can also address risk assessments and the implementation of protective measures.

Good planning and understanding of the risks can prevent these tragic accidents from happening in the first place.