Richard Ogunleye, a father of three from South Woodham Ferrers in Essex, was working for Tarmac Building Products at its manufacturing plant in Linford, Essex, on 22nd July 2022 when he entered a fenced-off area to manually clean and inspect frames. The frames, which carry large blocks through the manufacturing process, move around the factory on a trackway.
Ogunleye entered the fenced area through an interlocked gate which, when opened, was supposed to prevent frames from moving on that section of the track. As he was working on the stationary frame, another frame moved along the trackway into the section and struck him. His legs were crushed and pinned between the two frames.
He was trapped as the frames continued to move along the track, pushing him towards machinery on the next section. Ogunleye鈥檚 right leg was broken and the other severely bruised as the frames moved over axles on the track. A colleague saw the incident from a distance and ran to help, pressing the emergency stop button in time to prevent further injury.
Ogunleye spent two weeks in hospital, where a metal rod and screws were used to repair the injuries to his right leg. He was unable to return to work for more than a year and underwent extensive physiotherapy.
An investigation by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) found that Tarmac Building Products Limited failed to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery, namely the moving frames on the track, or prevent the frames from moving when employees entered the danger zone. The interlocked gate that employees used to enter the frame cleaning area did not stop the power on the preceding sections of track and therefore would not prevent a frame from moving into this area when employees were working.
The HSE investigation also revealed that the company had failed to act following several previous near misses on this section of the track. The investigation also found that a risk assessment had been carried out by the company a few years before the incident, identifying 鈥渁dditional control measures required to reduce risk to an acceptable level鈥�. However, these were not put in place until after Ogunleye was injured.
Tarmac Building Products Limited pleaded guilty to failing to discharge its duty under Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The company was fined 拢633,300, ordered to pay 拢5,583 in costs and a victim surcharge of 拢2,000 at Chelmsford Magistrates鈥� Court on 29th January 2026.
HSE inspector Connor Stowers said: 鈥淭his was a serious and entirely avoidable incident, which has had profound consequences for Mr. Ogunleye, and were it not for the quick action of a fellow worker, the injuries he sustained could have been worse.
鈥淓mployers need to ensure that dangerous machinery is guarded effectively, and this goes beyond the initial installation. Employers should frequently monitor how effective their measures are and make changes as needed. Monitoring arrangements should include properly investigating near misses and previous incidents.
鈥淚n this case, had the previous near misses on the block production line at Tarmac Linford been fully investigated and sufficient action taken, this life-changing injury would never have occurred.鈥�