Mother, 29, killed by falling bricks near East London building site, Old Bailey told

Michaela Boor, 29, died after a pallet of bricks fell from a tower crane as she walked past a Bow construction site. A building firm and four workers face trial for her death.

Mother crushed by falling bricks on school run in Bow, East London

Michaela Boor, 29, was killed when a pallet of bricks dropped from a tower crane onto the pavement as she walked along Burdett Road in Bow, East London, the Old Bailey heard. The Sun reports that she had just dropped her children at a nearby primary school and was returning from local shops when the incident occurred in March 2018.

Prosecutor Alexandra Healy KC told jurors that Boor and her friend Chelsea Mustafa had left their children at a primary school on St Paul's Way and walked to Lidl and Tesco. "It was Michaela's birthday the following day and she wanted to buy some things," Healy said. The two women were walking back along Burdett Road towards the junction with St Paul's Way when the load fell.

Chelsea was struck by bricks on her hand and back but managed to escape the bulk of the falling load by running into the road. Michaela did not clear the pavement in time. The bricks fractured her skull, causing what the court heard described as catastrophic brain injuries.

She was treated at the scene before being taken to the Royal London Hospital. Despite undergoing surgery, she died two days later, on 29 March 2018, from injuries described as "unsurvivable."

Five defendants deny the charges

Higgins Homes plc, the principal contractor and designer of the project to build a block of flats at the site, faces a charge of corporate manslaughter and a separate charge under the Health and Safety at Work Act. The company denies both counts.

Four construction workers are also on trial, each charged with gross negligence manslaughter and a Health and Safety at Work Act offence, all of which they deny.

Thomas Anstis, 69, was the senior site manager and temporary works co-ordinator employed by Higgins Homes. He was responsible for overseeing the work of subcontractors and co-ordinating their activities on the site.

Stephen Coulson, 69, director of Coulson Lifting Services — contracted by Higgins Homes — was the appointed person responsible for planning all lifting operations. Although he was not required to be permanently on site, he was expected to visit periodically to assess whether changed conditions required amendments to the lift plan. He was not present on the day of the incident, the court was told.

Dawood Maan, 61, was the crane supervisor responsible for overseeing lifting operations. He worked as a self-employed contractor for Coulson Lifting Services. Alexander McInnes, 34, was the self-employed crane operator working for contractor London Tower Cranes.

The trial before the Old Bailey continues.

Source: The Sun