A quarry owner was fined €3,000 for failing to adhere to safety rules, which led to a worker’s death after being impaled by a forklift.

The victim, Loreto Cutajar, from Gudja was driving the dilapidated forklift in a quarry in Żurrieq at about 5 p.m. on January 22, 2002, when the brakes failed and the machine took a five foot plunge off a ramp.

Mr Cutajar jumped out but ended up beneath the vehicle, with one of the prongs piercing his chest.

The first thing that came to Mr Cutajar’s mind was to call his boss and long-time friend, Nazzareno Scicluna, 59, from Siġġiewi to inform him of the accident.

Mr Scicluna in turn phoned an ambulance, rushed to the scene and tried to lift the machine off the injured worker using another piece of equipment until Civil Protection Department personnel arrived and used the same equipment to free him.

Magistrate Antonio Micallef Trigona noted in his judgement that the forklift had a number of faults including the brake system, a faulty handbrake, defective steering and a worn out tyre.

In addition, there was no barrier to guard against falling off the ramp, apart from a number of other deficiencies in the quarry.

Mr Scicluna’s insurance company paid out damages to the tune of €35,000 to the victim’s family, which amount was doubled by Mr Scicluna out of his own free will.

The magistrate found Mr Scicluna guilty of failing to adhere to safety regulations. He also ruled that the victim had contributed to his own death because he was the person that ran the quarry and was responsible for the maintenance of vehicles and equipment on site.

The €3,000 fine was the maximum the court could give as the law stood at the time.

Lawyers Emanuel Mallia and Arthur Azzopardi appeared for Mr Scicluna.