The families of five migrant workers who were crushed to death at a scrap metal plant four years ago say they have been treated “as if our lives do not matter” after the criminal investigation was hit with further delays. The men, who were from the Gambia and Senegal and were employed on zero-hours contracts, were killed on 7 July 2016 when a 3.6-metre wall and 263 tonnes of metal collapsed on top of them at the Hawkeswood Metal Recycling site in Birmingham. The deaths of Almamo Jammeh, 45, Ousmane Diaby, 39, Bangally Dukureh, 55, Saibo Sillah, 42, and Muhamadou Jagana, 49, are believed to be the single biggest loss of life at a recycling plant in the UK.
Despite a four-year criminal investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and an inquest’s finding that the risk of the tragedy was foreseeable, no one has yet been arrested or prosecuted over the deaths.The men’s families say they were distraught after being told recently that the investigation had been delayed further, despite “repeated promises” from the HSE that it would decide whether to prosecute the scrap metal firm Shredmet, which owns the site, before the fourth anniversary next week.
The families say they feel they have been treated differently because of their heritage. In a nod to the Black Lives Matter movement, they said: “This news has caused us grief and anguish. We have met with delay at every stage of the process. We demand justice and accountability. We are five black families, from Gambia and Senegal; it is as if our lives do not matter. Our lives do matter.”
Read More: Josh Halliday, Guardian, https://is.gd/8xBGjH
