14/12/05 - Three in court over care home fire
The owners of a nursing home where 14 residents died
after a fire broke out in a cupboard have appeared in court charged
with breaches of health and safety law.
Husband and wife Thomas and Anne Balmer and their son Alan Balmer appeared
on petition in private at Hamilton Sheriff Court .
The Balmers own the Rosepark Care Home in Uddingston, Lanarkshire, where
14 of the 43 residents died after a fire in January 2004 - the worst
death toll for a single fire in Scotland for 30 years.
Thick smoke from a small fire in a linen cupboard is believed to have
been the cause of the early hours tragedy. The fire damage extended
only a few metres either side of the cupboard.
Many of the residents who died had been sleeping with their doors open.
The four staff on duty that night rescued more than 20 residents from
the home. Some had to be carried out or pushed in wheelchairs.
Ten died at the scene. Four of the seven people taken to hospital later
died of their injuries. The victims ranged in age from their early 80s
to nearly 100.
Following the tragedy, around 80 per cent of Scotland's care homes for
the elderly were told to improve fire safety.
Rosepark opened in 1992 and was inspected by the Care Commission only
months before the fire. No fire safety issues were identified.
After the fire, a statement from the Care Commission said: "Rosepark
... was found to be operating to the required standards. In particular
there was no indication at that time of any problem regarding fire safety."
North Lanarkshire Council chief executive Gavin Whitefield added: "It
is a relatively new home and I am unaware of any issues regarding the
facilities there, which were of a high standard."
John Reid, the local MP, who was health secretary at the time of the
fire, said: "I have been to homes which have been old and appear a bit
run-down, but this was none of these."
The home, in Uddingston's New Edinburgh Road, was the first such establishment
to be given a quality assurance award for high standards of customer
service. Rosepark caters for both long and short-term residents and
also offers day care, respite care and places for the terminally-ill
and mentally impaired.
All three are accused of breaches of sections 2 and 3 of the Health
and Safety at Work Act 1974, one contravention of Regulation 3 of the
Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, and one contravention of
the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989.
The Balmers, who made no plea or declaration, were committed for further
examination and released on bail.
In a statement issued last night, Thomas Balmer said: "We welcome the
opportunity to answer the charges laid before us.
"After such a long and agonising period for the families of the victims,
the staff and ourselves, it is in everyone's interest to bring this
matter to a conclusion."
Source : The Scotsman
