£124,000 Fine for Tyre Fitter’s Death
The managing director of a Lanarkshire tyre firm was the recipient of fines totalling £124,000 after a ruling on March 14 decreed he was at blame for the death of a teenage employee. Donald Kelly, a 19-year old trainee tyre fitter, died when a giant JCB tyre he was inflating exploded in his face. Mr. Kelly was rushed to hospital following the incident on May 13, 2005, but was pronounced dead shortly after arrival.
John Wallace, 64, managing director of Auchinlea Tyres, based in Cleland, Lanarkshire, appeared before Hamilton Sheriff Court where he admitted to charges that his negligence led to the teenager’s death. The court found that Mr. Wallace breached health and safety rules by allowing Mr. Kelly to inflate tyres using an air line that was not fitted with a pressure gauge or a control trigger. Mr Wallace was also accused of failing to provide a safety cage for the inflation of large tyres.