Cordant Cleaning Limited Employee Killed at Bus Depot

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• Cordant Cleaning Limited Employee Killed at Bus Depot

18 January 2024

Albin Trstena was working for Cordant Cleaning Limited when he was hit by a reversing bus being driven by a colleague.

Albin, 25 from Tottenham was working at the yard of Arriva’s Hemel Hempstead bus depot when the vehicle reversed out of the wash-down area. He sustained fatal injuries.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that national bus company Arriva failed to assess the risk of vehicle-pedestrian conflict properly. Both Arriva and Cordant Cleaning Limited failed to implement a suitable system of work to control this risk. HSE also discovered that there were not sufficient measures in place to protect pedestrians from vehicles being moved around the depot. There was also a failure to ensure that walkways within the yard's perimeter were being used.

Cordant Cleaning Limited, part of Cordant Services Group was subsequently known as C.L.C Realisations Limited, which is now in administration. Cordant Services Group was acquired by Bidvest Noonan in 2021.

C.L.C Realisations Limited of Wellington Street, Leeds (in administration) offered no plea but was found guilty of breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and fined a nominal £1,000. Arriva Kent Thameside Limited of Doxford International Business Park, Sunderland, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and was fined £32,000 and ordered to pay costs of £22,392.

In a statement read at St Albans Magistrates’ Court, Albin’s sister Albina said: “When we received the news Albin had died, we were left devastated and our whole world came crashing down around us. His presence at home was so alive. Albin would always do lots for the family, but not just for the family, he gave of himself and would always help other people where he could.

“He was a brother and son to be proud of.”

HSE inspector Roxanne Barker added: “This tragic incident led to the avoidable death of a much loved young man. There was a failure to undertake safety measures to segregate vehicles and pedestrians.

“They also failed to properly consider who was responsible for determining and implementing suitable measures to ensure safe working practices when contracting out some of the activities performed within a shared workplace.”

Picture: a close-up photograph of an Arriva bus. Image Credit: Arriva

Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 18 January 2024

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