Englishman who moved to Australia identified as the stonemason killed when bricks and scaffolding collapsed on him at a school
- Stonemason who lost his life on Friday has been identified as Alistair Bidmead
- He was working on a wall of a Petersham school building when disaster struck
- A concrete slab, bricks and scaffolding weighing several tonnes fell on the man
- Some of his workmates witnessed the horrific accident but no kids saw it happen
- A crane was brought in to remove a massive slab that had trapped Mr Bidmead
Alistair Bidmead (pictured) was a professional stone mason with almost 20 years in the business before he was trapped and killed by falling debris on a Petersham school site
A migrant English craftsman has been named as the stonemason who was killed when ‘several tonnes’ of scaffolding and bricks collapsed and crushed him on Friday.
Alistair Bidmead was working on the façade of a building when the tragic accident occurred at Fort St High School at Petersham in Sydney’s inner west.
The stonemason, who ran and owned Bidmead & Co based on Sydney’s northern beaches, lost his life while working on the third storey of the school’s main building.
NSW Ambulance Inspector Michael Corlis said attempts to resuscitate Mr Bidmead were futile.
‘His injuries were [such] he could not be resuscitated … unfortunately there was nothing we could do,’ Inspector Corlis told 9News.
It is believed a façade broke loose from the structure before collapsing on top of him at 11am, with a number of workmates witnessing his death.
NSW Ambulance tried to revive Mr Bidmead (pictured) but his injuries were too severe
It is believed a façade broke loose from the structure before collapsing on top of him at 11am, with a number of workmates witnessing his death (pictured, an image from the scene)
A crane was brought in five hours after the accident to remove the colossal slab of masonry and heavy rubble that crushed Mr Bidmead.
His body was found among the twisted scaffolding and debris.
The tradie was a classically trained stonemason whose business did restoration services on heritage buildings and constructed new stonework too.
He had been in the business for more than 16 years, undertaking and managing projects in both Australia and the UK, and hailed from north-west of London.
No children at the school witnessed the horrific freak event.
The education department and the school declined to comment.
A crime scene was established with police and Safe Work Australia investigating.
Stonemason Alistair Bidmead (pictured) died on Friday after several tonnes of debris, including a sandstone concrete slab fell on him as he worked
None of the kids from the school (pictured in Sydney’s inner west) witnessed the accident, nor were any staff involved or injured
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