First bodies recovered as five die in Birmingham industrial accident

6pm Update

THE bodies of all five people killed in the accident have now been recovered and emergency services are preparing to leave the scene.

While not named officially, all five men are understood to be from the local Gambian community and were agency staff working at the facility.

The causes of the accident are still under investigation

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RESCUE workers have recovered the first two bodies of the five workers killed when a concrete wall collapsed on top of them at a Birmingham metals recycling centre.

The men were working in a materials recovery bay at Hawkeswood Metal in Nechells yesterday when the accident happened.

Emergency services worked throughout yesterday and overnight to recover the bodies after it became apparent on their arrival at the scene that the men, all thought to be workers at the centre, were already dead.

A further victim sustained leg injuries and was taken to hospital before the police arrived on the scene.

Det Supt Mark Payne, of West Midlands Police, said: “I’ve seen the scene, and without being too graphic – there was no chance anyone was alive.

“The wall constructed of blocks which weigh around 1.5 tonnes each block was supporting a body of scrap metal and it appears that wall collapsed on top of the men and the scrap metal has also fallen on top of them too.

“You can imagine it’s a very difficult and complex scene that we’re working with.”

He added that police would be working with the Health and Safety Executive and other parties to determine the cause of the accident.

John Woodhall, of West Midlands Ambulance Service, said: “We put a lot of resources into it, but quickly realised there was nothing we could do to save the five people involved.

“Employees were very upset as we’d already ascertained that we couldn’t do anything for (those) involved.”

The five people who died are all thought to be Spanish nationals of Gambian origin, who came to Nechells, where there is a strong Gambian community, in order to find work.

The owner of the recycling centre, Hawkeswood Metal, has said the deaths are attributable to the collapse of a partitioning wall within one of the recycling bays.

It said the wall had been in place for around two years and it was not aware of any damage to the structure that would have caused it to collapse.

The company, which is cooperating with the accident inquiry, has offered its condolences to the families of those who died.