A workman described as the "greatest partner and father" died in a horror accident in which he fell down a manhole cover at a site at which he should not have been working, an inquest has heard.
Specialist labourer David Archer, 36, fell into an open manhole on the site of a new housing estate in Ramsgate, Kent, while he was distracted by a passing street cleaning vehicle on November 14 last year. An inquest at Oakwood House in Maidstone heard he had been working for two days on the project at New Haine Road, which required the dad-of-two to descend into the opening using a ladder and wearing a safety harness.
When he fell, Mr Archer had taken off his harness to complete his final task of the shift, with supervisor Andrew Thackeray seeing the accident as it happened. He said "it all happened very quickly" when he glanced at his colleague as he picked up a dropped manhole key.
Kent Live reported that he immediately raised the alarm, with firefighters and paramedics arriving to attend the scene. But they were unable to save the dad after removing him from the manhole, and he was pronounced dead. Jurors concluded his death was accidental, but the inquest heard his training had lapsed at the time, meaning he did not have the correct permit to work on location. Sam Shine, the health and safety director at Kingsheath Construction Ltd, Mr Archer's employer, accepted the training rota should have been checked.
His heartbroken family told the hearing the finding "does not tell the full story", and that the dad could still be alive today if his employer had abided processes and health and safety protocols. His partner, Rachel, said she and their children "sleep together with his clothes under our pillows".
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The mum and her wider family said in a statement: “We understand the inquest process does not apportion blame, but the finding - accidental death - does not tell the full story. We feel that other factors contributed to us losing Dave that night, and this accident could have been avoided if processes and health and safety protocols were abided by all within Kingsheath Construction Limited.
"I would like to thank my family, my friends, but also the community of Deal and surrounding areas for their support these last months since losing the greatest person in mine and our children's lives. I would also like to thank my solicitor, Samuel David, for supporting me through the whole process and making it feel very personal." The statement added: "Dave was bubbly, happy, and the most wonderful partner and dad I could have ever wished for. He loved life, loved me, loved our children, loved sports and his football. He was passionate about everything he did. From the day we met I was utterly in love with him.
"From the start of our relationship, there was no looking back, just looking forward together. It was true - when you meet someone, you are meant to be together, you simply just know. But still our relationship and love for each other only grew stronger and stronger." The statement added: "We all continue to support each other and come united as one big family. Losing Dave has had a massive impact on all of our lives. We continue to take each day as it comes and support each other, through this new life we now have to lead. We lost the greatest partner and father." A fundraiser aiming to raise £5,000 for the bereaved family in the wake of the dad's death has since raised £38,000.
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