A company has been fined £1.6m after a man was crushed to death by scaffolding that fell from a crane.

Jack Phillips died on August 8, 2019, while working for Brand Energy and Infrastructure Services UK Ltd at South Cliff Tower in Eastbourne.

The 24-year-old had been assisting while temporary mast climber work platform sections were being lifted by a lorry-mounted crane.

Scaffolding fell on top of Jack when the lifting sling which was attached to the crane snapped.

Scaffolding fell when the lifting sling which was attached to the crane snapped Scaffolding fell when the lifting sling which was attached to the crane snapped (Image: Health and Safety Executive) An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Sussex Police found Brand Energy and Infrastructure Services UK Ltd, trading as Lyndon SGB, failed to properly plan the lifting operation of the work platform.

The company, a provider of temporary access equipment, had failed to identify a requirement for safe exclusion zones. The company also failed to have a suitable robust system in place to ensure all accessories had been thoroughly examined or disposed when expired.

This resulted in out-of-date slings being used.

Jack’s parents Scot and Nichola said they are “no longer complete” following the loss of their “happy-go-lucky” son.

They said in a statement: “How do you put into words the utter devastation you feel?”

“Our child, our only son, is dead. Our life, our family’s life has now changed forever.

“We are no longer complete without Jack, we will never see our baby boy, the boy we nurtured and helped grow into a young man, get married, raise a family, or grow old.

Jack was a much loved sonJack was a much loved son (Image: Health and Safety Executive) “His sisters will never have the honour of him being an uncle to their children. We will never have the honour of seeing or meeting his children. Jack was a happy-go- lucky Jack the lad.

“Everyone who had the pleasure of meeting him, loved him.”

Brand Energy and Infrastructure Services UK Ltd, of Kingston Road, Leatherhead, Surrey pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The company was fined £1,600,000 and ordered to pay £23,193.60 in costs at Brighton Magistrates’ Court on November 27.

HSE principal inspector Ross Carter said: “This tragic incident led to the wholly avoidable death of a young man. This death could so easily have been prevented if Jack’s employer had fulfilled its statutory duty to plan and manage the risks associated with lifting equipment and lifting operations.

“Brand Energy and Infrastructure Services UK Ltd failed in its duty of care to all its operatives, including Jack, in the way it planned and implemented the lifting operations and the slack customs and practices it allowed to become part of the safety culture with regard to lifting.”