The tragic death of a much-loved husband and father pinned and crushed between two 4.8 tonne shipping containers could have been prevented, a Sydney court has found.
Tyne ACFS was convicted in the Downing Centre District Court on Wednesday and ordered to pay a $300,000 fine over the death of Jeffrey Kwok Chuen Ho at Matraville on September 25, 2019.
Judge Wendy Strathdee found the firm's failure to ensure the safety of its workers was an "objectively serious offence".
"The seriousness of the foreseeable harm to a worker was extreme, and the steps available to avoid the risk were straightforward and inexpensive," she wrote.
Tyne ACFS is a Sydney joint venture between Tyne Container Services and Australian Container Freight Services which operates a number of container depots across Sydney.
Nine staff were employed at the Matraville depot where Mr Ho worked as a container surveyor.
While inspecting a line of 40-foot (12.2m) containers on September 25, Mr Ho walked through a narrow passageway about 55 cm wide.
Another worker, Daniel Mackey, was operating a forklift nearby. While reversing, the vehicle struck a container next to the 68-year-old, causing it to shift and close the passageway he was in.
Crushing and pinning the surveyor, the containers were eventually shifted but Mr Ho was unable to be revived.
A joint victim impact statement by widow Ada Ho and her son Adrian Ho was "distressing" and showed suffering which was "enormous and unending," Judge Strathdee said.
"(Mr Ho's) tragic passing plunged the family into financial disarray and created enormous stress in addition to the psychological, emotional and social impacts associated with his untimely passing," she wrote in her judgment.
The judge accepted Tyne ACFS was unaware of the risks prior to the tragedy. This was not a company which knew of the foreseeable dangers but acted recklessly and did nothing to prevent them, she said.
"I do not find that the defendant's conduct disclosed any disregard for public safety," she wrote.
"However, the gravity of the risk was extreme given the weight and size of the containers being handled by the forklifts."
Prior to the incident, there was no way to signal that surveyors were present onsite other than hand waving and eye-contact nor was there any way to separate forklifts and pedestrians on site.
These measures were inadequate to mitigate any risks, the judge found.
"There were simple, straightforward steps which could and should have been taken to avoid the risk."
Tyne ACFS improved its processes after the death, creating a designated survey pad, painting markings on the road, and developing safety procedures.
This prompt action, the firm's clean prior criminal history, its co-operation with SafeWork NSW, and its early guilty plea were taken into account as mitigating factors by the judge.
As well as the fine, the joint venture was ordered to pay $53,000 in SafeWork's legal costs.
AAP has contacted Tyne Container Services, ACFS and SafeWork NSW for comment.
