A widow has told of her heartbreak after her husband was crushed to death at work.
Jayne Willoughby said her life also ended the day she was told her soulmate Colin Willoughby, 52, had died.
The engineer was killed by a 1,000 tonne hydraulic press while working at Graham Engineering Ltd in Nelson, Lancashire.
“Overnight, life seemed pointless", Jayne told Lancs Live.
“Before we met, life was lonely for both of us. After we met, we came together and achieved all our dreams. Everything was taken away from us.”
Colin died instantly when the piston fell on him as he worked under a Hugh Smith 1000 press in May 2018.
The firm was fined more than £500,000 at Preston Crown Court after admitting health and safety failures which resulted in Colin’s death.
His wife told of her devastation after returning home to find two police officers at her front door and said he never got to meet his granddaughter.
"My first thought was, ‘have I gone through a red light?" Jayne said.
“The police came in and told me there had been an accident at work. They wanted me to sit down, but I wouldn’t. I just collapsed in a chair and started shaking."
The couple met later in life and had set up home on a smallholding, where they planned to spend their years together.
Jayne added: "Colin and I had just moved into this home. It was our dream home. Colin had just finished renovating the interior and just had a few cobbles left to lay outside."
Colin, known as the go-to guy for tricky engineering problems, had recently been promoted in his role at Graham Engineering Ltd.
The firm, based on the Whitehills Industrial Estate, had secured a contract with Siemens to manufacture parts for MRI scanners.
Company director Stuart Frazer had acquired the Hugh Smith press and believed it would be suitable for the job, however the machine needed maintenance.
But as Colin worked underneath the press, grinding away at poor quality welding, tragedy struck when a piston came loose and crushed him underneath the press.
Jayne also told how maintenance and animal care on the smallholding where they lived was suddenly challenging without Colin by her side to help.
“The wood burner broke and I had to find the money to buy a new one. I didn’t know how to source wood or chop wood, because Colin had always done it," she said.
“Even the dogs wouldn’t behave for me. Colin had them under control. Everything was difficult, from arranging the funeral to trying to do jobs around the house.
"Going out was traumatic and I found I wasn’t functioning in shops. My head felt like mush and I felt I was stuttering and falling over my words.
"As a single person I no longer join in couple type events, like barbecues or weekends away. Colin was always involved, he was a people person.”
In January 2022, Graham Engineering Ltd was convicted of failing to protect the health and safety of one or more employees, resulting in Colin Willoughby’s death.
The company director Stuart Frazer was cleared of the same charge but appeared in court to represent the firm when it was sentenced on April 27.
Judge Parry said the procedure used to lift the press, using two fork-lift trucks, should have been subject to its own risk assessment, as it was an unusual shape and size.
A further risk assessment should have been carried out before any work was done to the machinery.
“There were many, many, inherent dangers”, said the judge as he ordered the firm to pay a £500,000 fine and around £145,000 prosecution costs.
Jayne said: “I feel my life has ended, not just Colin’s. I don’t know how to move on from this. I don’t know what my purpose in life is or how to move on. I don't have anyone to go to to discuss the days. Colin was my go-to, my soulmate."
Since Colin's death, Jayne has become a grandmother and said her husband would have made a wonderful granddad.
"Colin was the gentlest person you could ever meet. I miss him daily but I know I have to go on because Colin made this life for me,” she added.
She described her husband as “so loving” and said she feels lucky to have met him.
