A tanker driver suffered serious chemical burns to his feet after standing in what he thought was a puddle of water at a customer’s premises. The driver required skin grafts and two toes had to be amputated following the incident at the site of chemical producer Tronox Pigment UK. Tronox has now been fined £200,000 after the “disturbing” episode that took place in Stallingborough near Grimsby in August 2022.
The Health and Safety Executive said the driver was offloading his tanker with a delivery at the company premises and was standing in the puddle, which he assumed was water as it had been raining throughout the day and the drains were blocked. However, the driver was actually standing in a pool of water containing a corrosive chemical substance. The chemical had leaked from the company’s scrubber system and secondary containment. It ended up on the roadway after the site’s sump pumps failed to pump it away. The burns the driver sustained led to him requiring skin grafts to the underside of both feet. The smallest toe on each of his feet were also amputated and he was unable to work for 12 weeks.
The company pleaded guilty to breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act, and as well as the fine, was ordered to pay costs of £7,500 at Grimsby Magistrates’ Court.
