Brasserie Blanc's stairs pass safety check two weeks before employee's fall (From St Albans & Harpenden Review)

Brasserie Blanc's stairs pass safety check two weeks before employee's fall

2:01pm Tuesday 19th March 2013 in News By Rebecca Perring, Reporter

The general manager of a restaurant in St Albans says the flight of stairs an employee fell down last Friday had been checked by external health and safety assessors only two weeks before the accident.

Emergency services released the kitchen porter from the cellar in Brasserie Blanc, Verulam Road after he lost his footing and fell down a narrow flight of stairs.

He fell into a storage room at the back of the restaurant, however space constraints meant the East of England Ambulance Service (EEAST) and hazardous area response team (HART) removed him from the cellar hatch door into the street above.

He was then rushed to Watford General Hospital with slight bruising.

General manager of the restaurant Rob Leader confirmed the man in his twenties was released on the day of the incident and will return to work later on this week. Mr Leader said: "We are relieved that he is okay and will be returning back to work as normal in the next few days.

"The stairs had only been checked two weeks prior to the accident and have all the recommended safety grips and are properly maintained. It was a simple case of losing your footing as everyone does."

The general manager confirmed the restaurant's external healthy and safety company has been informed.