Network Rail has been fined £696,666 after pleading guilty to an offence under the Health and Safety at Work Act, following a fire at an electrical substation that seriously injured a worker.
Regulator the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), which brought the prosecution, said Network Rail had failed, over a significant period of time, to prevent water leaking into the building and to maintain dehumidifiers installed inside.
In December 2018 an employee of the infrastructure operator was seriously injured with third degree and mixed depth burns in the fire at Godinton substation in Kent.
The ORR said its investigation had found the conditions were unsafe, and that the failures led to an electrical arc and a fire while Network Rail’s employees were working on a circuit breaker.
The conditions inside the substation on the day of the incident were described as ‘like a sauna’.
Ian Prosser CBE, HM Chief Inspector of Railways at the ORR, said: ‘This case highlights the importance of acting to reduce or eliminate known risks at an early stage.
‘Network Rail knew of the water leak at Godinton for nine months and despite concerns raised by staff and contractors, the required work was repeatedly delayed.
‘This was a known risk and the failure to deal with it effectively led to staff working in unsafe conditions, resulting in serious injuries to one employee.’
In his sentencing remarks, District Judge Barron said that the system of work in place at the time was not sufficiently robust and the training programme for Network Rail’s technicians at the time did not adequately identify the dangers of working near to live equipment in damp conditions.
Network Rail was also ordered to pay £33,647.45 in costs.
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