A company has been fined after a 16-year-old apprentice had a finger amputated while operating a log splitter.

Ed Rogers Landscape Construction and Maintenance Ltd of Jericho Street, Thorverton, pleaded guilty at Exeter Magistrates Court to the offence under Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. It was fined £6,000 with £1,017 in costs.

The court heard how the teenager had been gaining work experience with the company for three weeks when the incident happened. He was shown how to operate a log splitter by the company owner, Edward Rogers, and then was left to work alone on site.

-- Advertisement --

While operating the splitter, he held a log in place and started the machine. The hydraulic blade of the log splitter came down onto the log and severed his finger.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that while the teenager was working alone on site at the time, there was no first aid given. As a result, when he was taken to hospital staff were unable to save his finger.

HSE Inspector Simon Jones, said: "Work experience for young people is incredibly valuable and is to be encouraged but companies taking on apprentices must take into account the young person's inexperience. As a result they should be fully supervised when operating dangerous machinery.

"The boy being isolated made the situation worse when there was no one on site to help him after suffering this appalling, life changing injury."

(LM/MH)