Worker died in crash when ‘stopping to urinate’ between lorry’s axles

Thomas Joseph McAuley, 54, was working on resurfacing the road in Redwood Drive, Ferndown, on July 5, 2022 when he died. At around 11am, he placed himself within the area between the third and fourth axles of a 32-tonne grab lorry “likely so he could urinate”, Dorset coroner Brendan Allen said. However, according to Mr Allen’s report, the driver of the lorry was unaware of Mr McAuley being so close to the lorry and went to drive forward a short distance and at a low speed.

Mr McAuley, who was working for the Birmingham-based contractor Kiely Bros (KBL) , was then struck by the lorry, causing “catastrophic” injuries that caused his death. Redwood Drive, Ferndown An inquest into the death of Mr McAuley heard that it is “common practice” for roadwork crews to use the space between the rear axles of lorries to urinate, even if welfare vans are provided.

Mr Allen said in his report: “A witness who had worked for at least one company as part of a roadwork crew prior to joining KBL gave evidence that it was a practice that he was aware of ‘since starting on the roads’. “Although it would seem that KBL employees no longer engage in this practice, likely because of the tragic death of Mr McAuley, there was no evidence available at the inquest to suggest his death had had an impact on the industry more widely.” The coroner said he had concerns about the risk of using the space between the axles of lorries, saying “any small movement of the vehicles can cause fatal injuries”.

He added: “I am not aware of any safety notice(s) being issued since Mr McAuley’s death or any wider publicity that may have highlighted the risk. “Ensuring that companies undertaking road resurfacing work or similar are made aware of the risk that this practice is ongoing will enable them to take measures to address this potential ongoing risk.”

Criminal proceedings were briefly launched by the Crown Prosecution Service and Dorset Police when Pawel Feliks Stefanski, of Birmingham, was charged with causing death by careless or inconsiderate driving. However, this was dropped in October 2022 with the CPS saying: “Following the submission of further evidence from the police, it was decided that there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction in this case.” The report was sent to the Heath and Safety Executive (HSE) and it has been ordered to respond to Mr Allen’s respondings.

A spokeswoman for the HSE said: “We provided assistance to the Coroner during the inquest of Thomas McAuley. “Following its conclusion, we received a prevention of future deaths report and are considering its content. “We remain committed to working with industry to improve safety.”

Dorset Council and Kiely Bros were also sent the report, but only as a person of interest. Dorset Council’s spokesman said: “Dorset Council was saddened to hear about this incident, and send our deepest sympathies to Mr McAuley’s family. “We are grateful to the coroner for providing us with a copy of their report, which we hope will help prevent such a tragic accident from happening in the future.”

Kiely Bros has been approached for a comment.