Farm fined £80,000 after worker killed by exploding tractor tyre

Joshua Hardman, aged 23, was working on a Lancashire dairy farm run by W Hesketh and Sons when the incident happened on 7 May 2021. He was helping to re-seat and inflate a large tractor tyre. As the inner tube was inflated, it exploded and the sudden release of compressed air propelled the wheel rim into Joshua, causing severe head injuries.

Photograph: iStock/georgeclerk

He was taken to hospital, where he underwent skull and brain surgeries, but died from his injuries on 11 June. Joshua’s family described him as having a “heart of gold” and being “an amazing dad” to his five-year-old daughter.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said the incident “could have easily been avoided” if the right controls had been in place. Tyre removal “should only be tackled by competent staff”, said the regulator, which has guidance on its website about how to carry out the procedure safely.

An HSE investigation found that W Hesketh and Sons had failed to properly assess and plan the work and had not identified or put in place control measures to account for the risks involved when inflating large commercial tyres. The risk of an explosion had been much higher, said HSE, because the tyre, wheel rim and inner tube were all in a poorly maintained condition.

W Hesketh and Sons, of Grange Lane, Hutton, Preston, pleaded guilty to breaching regulation 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. The company was fined £80,000 and ordered to pay costs of £8,605 at a hearing at Preston Magistrates Court on 4 February.

Agriculture is one of the most hazardous industries to work in. HSE statistics showed that 23 workers from the agriculture, forestry and fishing sector were killed in 2023/24 – the second highest number of work-related fatalities after the construction industry.