Elderly man, 91, dies an ‘agonising and degrading death’ after falling into a narrow trench in his backyard – as plumbers who dug it are whacked with a whopping fine
- Leslie Sloan was found in the 1.5metre-deep trench by his son on July 21, 2017
- Mr Sloan had died on his 91st birthday due to hypothermia, a court has heard
- He was stuck overnight in a singlet and underwear with temperatures at 6.2C
Leslie Sloan endured an agonising and degrading death on his 91st birthday in a narrow trench dug by plumbers in his backyard, a court has heard.
The Sydney plumbing company liable for the uncovered trench was on Thursday fined $300,000 by a NSW District Court judge who scolded the company for not preventing the ‘readily foreseeable’ risk of an accident.
Mr Sloan was found in the 1.5m-deep trench about 8am on July 21, 2017, by his son John, who’d arrived to celebrate his father’s birthday.
Unable to find his father in the house, he walked into the backyard and discovered Mr Sloan wedged face-up in the hole and barely alive.
Leslie Sloan died on his 91st birthday after he was stuck in a narrow trench overnight (stock image)
The mud-covered pensioner was dressed only in a singlet, underwear and one sock, and unable to be reached or helped by his son, Judge David Russell said on Thursday.
Another of Mr Sloan’s five children saw her father stuck in the trench before emergency services arrived.
‘All of the family victims who gave victim impact statements are haunted by the fact that their father – a proud, active and loving family man – died an agonising and degrading death over several hours, a death which was completely preventable,’ Judge Russell said.
Mr Sloan died during rescue efforts, with his cause of death attributed to hypothermia.
Overnight temperatures in the area had dropped to 6.2C.
Mr Sloan wearing a singlet, underwear and one sock when he got stuck overnight with temperatures reaching to just 6.2C. His death was atttributed to hypothermia (stock image)
Judge Russell was critical of Proflow Plumbing and Maintenance, which had been contracted over several days to fix a blocked sewer pipe.
He said the risk to someone falling in the uncovered trench overnight was ‘readily foreseeable’, the likelihood of the risk occurring in an elderly man’s home was significant, and the potential consequences catastrophic.
‘It is a risk which would have been recognised by a first-year apprentice,’ he said.
‘The burden or inconvenience of steps to eliminate or minimise the risk was minimal.
‘The offender had some basic materials in its truck, but even these were not used.’
Proflow, whose sole director is 26-year-old Toufic ‘Terry’ El-Esh, admitted it breached its duty of care to Mr Sloan.
The small business has now brought its documentation and safety procedures into line with those which should have been in place before the accident, Judge Russell said.
Mr El-Esh told the court he was deeply saddened by the incident and had personally offered his condolences in a letter to the family.
But the judge did not consider those actions as meeting the legal threshold that could reduce the fine.
Proflow was also ordered to pay Safework NSW’s legal costs, totalling $26,400.