A company has been fined £35,000 after a poorly planned pressure test on a hydraulic cylinder left a worker blind in his right eye.

The man was helping carry out a pressure test on a hydraulic cylinder at Lodematic Components Limited in Clitheroe, Lancashire, when the accident happened in January 2014.

Preston Crown Court was told the worker was hit in the face by a pressurised hose, sustaining a broken jaw and facial lacerations and being completed blinded in one eye.

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation revealed that the test zone had not been sealed off and the equipment used was not properly maintained.

In addition, there had been no proper risk assessment.

Lodematic Components admitted breaches of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. As well as the £35,000 fine, it was told to pay £7,835.52 prosecution costs.

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