By Eric King-
Birmingham Airport has been fined £100,000 after a young child became trapped in its baggage conveyor belt.
The trapped six-year-old boy was hospitalized for three days following the “traumatic” event which was witnessed by other travellers.
The incident last September also deeply upset the boys father and his partner who had to endure witnessing the traumatic effects on their son.
At the City’s magistrates court, Birmingham Airport Ltd admitted a charge under the Health&Safety at Work Act and was fined £100,000. It was also ordered to pay £1,251 costs.
The accident happened when the boy left the baggage reclaim area of the airport and wandered over to a conveyor belt used for over-size baggage. Cameras in the airport should have quickly spotted the incident and led to specially trained officials to quickly rescue the boy before it the situation deteriorated to a situation of hospitalisation. More importantly, the incident should never have happened in an airport expected to be equipped with sophisticated technological equipment.
Birmingham Airport said it was embarrassed over the whole affair. The fine of £100,000 will hurt Birmingham Airport, but it will be a hard lesson for them to learn. The airport one of Uk’s busiest airports, and the timing of the fine close to Christmas is far from ideal for them. However, fines are there to reflect the seriousness of the negligence involved and also serve as a deterrence to other airports or companies to prepare for these types of unforeseen scenarios.