An apprentice welder has suffered an injury at work while employed at a factory in Great Yarmouth.
The victim, who was 17 at the time, was instructed by another welder to use a toxic cleaning substance known as pickling paste to remove burn marks from the inside of small stainless steel tanks. However, he was left to undertake the work without supervision.
As he carried out the task, the tub of paste slipped from the young man's grasp and hit a bench. Some of the toxic substance splashed out and landed on his face, leaving him with severe chemical burns to his skin and right eye.
While his injuries later healed with no long-term effects of significant scarring, the victim might want to consider making an accident compensation claim for the incident due to the fact that he had not been informed of the hazardous nature of pickling paste and he should not have been using it
Martin Kneebone, a Health and Safety Executive inspector, commented, “[The company] knew the risks that pickling paste posed and even banned its use. But they failed to have effective management systems in place to ensure the ban was enforced and some was subsequently bought for a new task.
“This young man was let down by his employer and could have suffered far more serious injuries than he actually did, potentially even losing his sight.”