A six-week-old boy was killed when a load of topsoil spilled from a truck and hit a passing car in Killiney, Co Dublin, last year, a court heard yesterday.
An under-inflated tyre and the carrying out of a tipping operation had caused the truck to overturn.
Two companies were fined for health and safety breaches arising out of the accident at Avondale Road/Church Road, Killiney, on May 24th last year. It occurred as the finishing touches were being put to a 1.5km carriageway.
The main contractors, Clonmel Enterprises, were fined €3,250 for failing to ensure that a proper safety zone was in place so that passing traffic did not enter the area of the work.
Sub-contractor Gerry Kealy, Tipper and Plant Hire, was fined €4,000 for allowing a truck to be used with an under-inflated tyre, not having a safety statement in place and failing to maintain equipment in good working order.
Dublin District Court heard the truck driver, Mr Declan Park, was delivering a load of topsoil for the landscaping of the roadworks and had parked on a slope to carry out the operation.
Health and safety inspector Ms Aishling Davis said the tipper section of the truck was half-way up when there was a collision with a passing car carrying a mother and her baby.
One of the tyres was inflated to only half of what it should have been and because of the truck's location on a slope, it overturned.
The baby was killed and the mother survived.
The court heard that apart from the tyre the truck was in a road-worthy condition.
The soil had been provided by another company but the delivery time was not known in advance and as a result no barriers were in place to prevent cars from passing near the operation.
Judge Peter Smithwick said it was a tragic accident in which the family of the deceased had his deepest sympathy.
He was glad the defendants had admitted responsibility and saved them (the family) from the trauma of having to give evidence.