A High Court judge yesterday ordered the closure of a building site near the Phoenix Park in Dublin after hearing of two serious accidents there in the last three weeks.
Mr Justice McCracken described some photographs taken of the site as "fairly horrific".
The judge granted the closure order to the National Authority for Occupational Safety and Health against Capel Developments, with registered offices at Western Parkway Business Park, Lower Ballymount Road, Dublin.
The company is developing two apartment block sites at Riverpark, Conyngham Road, Dublin. A previous block was handed to the selling agents last month.
The order stops the company from using the site as a place of work until specified measures are taken to reduce the risk to the safety and health of those on the site to a reasonable level.
In an affidavit, Mr Jim Holmes, an inspector with the authority, said there had been an accident on the site on February 18th. Another accident took place on March 2nd when a carpenter's spine and pelvis were injured within hours of coming to work.
There was evidence to suggest that every time an authority inspector called to the site between October 15th, 1998 and March 3rd, 2000, both the project supervisor for the construction stage and the health and safety co-ordinator had failed in their duties under the 1995 Safety, Health and Welfare (Construction) Regulations.
Mr Holmes said the defendant company had appointed itself as project supervisor for the construction stage but he had difficulty in accepting this, considering the history of the site. He also questioned whether the health and safety co-ordinator appointed by the project supervisor had shown competence based on the conditions observed on the site between February 16th and March 3rd.
He also questioned the qualifications of the managing director of General Safety Managers Ltd and his claim to be a member of the Institute of Occupational Safety and Health. That company had informed the authority on February 18th that it was addressing all site safety matters for Capel Developments.
Mr Holmes said he considered the risk to the safety and health of people on the site at both apartment blocks to be so serious that its use as a place of work should be immediately prohibited until specified measures have been taken to reduce the risks to a reasonable level.
Mr Fergal Foley, for the authority, asked that the proceedings be adjourned until Monday.