Man who lost leg at work missed father's death

A man whose leg had to be partially amputated after it was crushed by a steel pallet said the hardest part of his injury was not being able to say goodbye to his father before he died.

Wayne Hatton was bedridden for nine months after the accident and also had to have two toes removed.

An investigation found the pallet was not supported properly and concrete manufacturer Amber Precast Ltd in Sheffield admitted breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act and was fined £60,000.

But Mr Hatton, 50, said being unwell for so long meant he only got to see his ill father twice more and added: "That was harder for me than losing my leg. I didn't get to say goodbye to him, which still hurts now."

Mr Hatton, from Doncaster, was working as a supervisor at the site when the 800kg pallet fell on him as it was being moved from a reinforced concrete cast by a crane. It had not been secured onto the lifting chains properly.

The incident happened in January 2021 and Mr Hatton now has to wear a prosthetic leg.

"I still get flashbacks about what happened," he said.

"Adapting mentally has been hard.

"Everyone always says 'you have handled it really well', but they don't see you on a day-to-day basis, just getting out of bed, putting your leg on and off and getting in and out of the shower and toilet," Mr Hatton added.

Mr Hatton also said his relationship with his eldest son Jayden became "massively strained" as the 17-year-old had to look after him.

Mr Hatton said: "He didn't realise what comes with running a house, washing, cleaning and everything else.

"And he was trying to have a social life as well, which he couldn't do, so it was hard for both us, frustrating and we fell out a lot of times."

Mr Hatton also used to play golf and go to the gym and was forced to move to a bungalow because of his condition.

But he said: "The hardest part for me was my dad had only had six months to live and in the last three months, I only got to see him twice before he died."

Amber Precast Ltd was also ordered to pay £5,406.31 in costs.

A spokesperson for the Health and Safety Executive, who carried out the investigation, said: "This incident could so easily have been avoided with the correct instruction and implementation of an agreed safe working procedure."

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