Yard workers drowned in pig feed, manslaughter trial hears

Two yard workers drowned in pig feed after being overcome by fumes inside a tanker, a court has heard.

Leicester Crown Court was told one of the workers, Nathan Walker, was asked to clean inside the tanker despite the risk of him being overcome by carbon dioxide.

Gavin Rawson is then thought to have died while trying to save him.

The company they worked for, Greenfeeds Limited in Leicestershire, denies two charges of corporate manslaughter.

The court heard the business produced biofuel and pig feed from recycled products, and the pig feed the men drowned in contained a mix of waste food, beer and fizzy drinks.

Opening the case, prosecution barrister John Harrison QC said it was routine for workers to go inside tankers to clean them with a jet wash.

"It is the prosecution case that requiring workers to go into these tankers - which were small, confined spaces containing semi-liquid pig feed - without any form of safety equipment demonstrates what could be described as reckless disregard for the safety both of those sent to clean the tankers, and those working in the yard generally," he said.

Gillian Leivers, one of the owners of the company, is accused of two charges of gross negligence manslaughter.

Employee Stewart Brown, 69, of Fernwood Close, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, is accused of two charges of gross negligence manslaughter, as well as failing to ensure the health and safety of his co-workers.

The company has already pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the health and safety of its employees. Mrs Leivers and her husband Ian Leivers, who co-owns the company, deny a related charge of allowing Greenfeeds to commit this offence.

Mr and Mrs Leivers are both 59 and from Fosse Road, East Stoke in Nottinghamshire.

Mr Walker, who was 19, and Mr Rawson, who was 35, both died at the Greenfeeds site in Normanton on 22 December 2016.

Mr Harrison told jurors a tanker - called Gordon - had a blockage, meaning it could not be emptied properly and was half-full of pig feed.

He said Gordon's driver, Richard Draycott, went and informed colleague Stewart Brown of this.

"He was told by Stewart Brown and Gillian Leivers that in order to fix the blockage, the tanker would need cleaning out and Nathan Walker would do the job," said Mr Harrison.

"Richard Draycott's instructions were to go to the yard and get Nathan Walker to help him."

The system in place, Mr Harrison said, was for one worker to go inside the tanker via a hatch on top, while another worker acted as a "spotter" and assisted in holding the hose.

"Nathan shuffled himself forwards and dropped out of view into the inside of the tanker," Mr Harrison said.

"A short time later, Mr Draycott shouted to Nathan to see if he was all right. He did not get any reply so climbed up.

"He saw Nathan was holding on to the top of the hatch with both hands; his whole body was hanging inside the tanker.

"Mr Draycott could see that Nathan was looking down and his whole body was shaking.

"Despite Mr Draycott's shouts, Nathan did not respond and moments later let go of the hatch."

Mr Draycott then saw Mr Walker lying face down in the feed, the court heard, so he found Gavin Rawson and another worker.

"Immediately, Gavin Rawson ran to the tanker to rescue Nathan," Mr Harrison said.

"They [Mr Draycott and the other worker] both soon realised that Gavin Rawson was also inside the tanker, although neither had seen him enter."

A circular saw was used to cut holes into the side of the tanker and free the men.

"By now the emergency services had arrived and started to attempt resuscitation," Mr Harrison said.

Both men were pronounced dead at the scene.

Post-mortem examinations were carried out by forensic pathologist Stuart Hamilton, who told jurors the men's cause of death was drowning.

Dr Hamilton said he internally examined both men and found animal feed in their airways.

Dr Steve Forman, principal medical adviser for the Health and Safety Executive, also gave evidence.

He explained to jurors carbon dioxide is usually present in air at a concentration of 0.04%, and is not dangerous at this level.

However, it causes people to become unconscious when it is at higher concentrations, he said.

"I would suggest that carbon dioxide levels in the tanker were at least 20%," Dr Forman said.

He believed the beer and fizzy drinks in the animal feed would have caused the high levels of carbon dioxide.

"The carbonation of these particular products is down to the presence of carbon dioxide," he said.

"When these products are sat they release carbon dioxide into the environment or the space."

The prosecution accused the owners of the company of putting profits before the safety of their employees.

"As long as they kept the tankers running and the money rolling in, Gillian Leivers and Ian Leivers and Greenfeeds were not concerned about the safety of the employees who had to get into the tankers to clean them," Mr Harrison said.

The trial continues.

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