An oil and gas service company has been fined £100,000 for breaching safety laws following the death of an offshore worker.
Lee Bertram, 37, was abseiling down the Brent Charlie platform when the rope he was attached to rubbed against the rough edge of a hatch and frayed.
The rope access technician then plunged 23 metres from the platform striking steelwork as he fell into the North Sea following the incident on June 16, 2011.
He was using ropes to access below the deck and carry out a sweep for dropped objects that could fall into the water, potentially injuring divers working in the sea below.
Mr Bertram, of Newcastle, was working for Bilfinger Salamis UK Limited at the time of the tragedy.
The company was fined 100,000 pounds after pleading guilty to breaching Regulation 4 of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 at Aberdeen Sheriff Court yesterday.
Following the hearing, a Bilfinger Salamis spokesman said: "On 16th of June, 2011 Lee Bertram was working as a rope access technician when he suffered a fatal fall whilst working offshore.
"Following the incident, we openly communicated with the industry, shared our initial findings and have subsequently been working with the authorities to fully understand the circumstances of the incident.
"Our thoughts at this difficult time are with Lee's family and friends."
The court heard that Mr Bertram had successfully abseiled around an area about eight square feet taking photographs and removing debris before the accident.
HSE Inspector Katie McCabe, said: "This was a tragic incident and Mr Bertram's death could have been prevented had Billfinger Salamis planned the job correctly and put suitable safety measures in place.
"Assessing the risks of that job properly would have identified that the potentially sharp edge presented a very clear danger to anyone suspended and working on ropes rigged against it.
"However, the company failed to do this so failed to take safety precautions and instead, Mr Bertram fell to his death."
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