Barnet councillor: Teenager electrocuted in kebab shop could have escaped death

12:00pm Wednesday 17th October 2012 in News Photograph of the Author By Natalie O'Neill

Pronto Grill where Wais Tanha died in 2010 Pronto Grill where Wais Tanha died in 2010

A teenager who was electrocuted in a kebab shop could have escaped death if health and safety checks were carried out, according to a Barnet councillor.

Wais Tanha, 18, was killed while cleaning a dough-making machine at his uncle’s takeaway shop, Pronto Grill in Hendon Way, Hendon, in September 2010.

Cllr David Longstaff says officers quickly identified a poorly fitted standard three pin plug as the cause of the incident.

He said: “The cord grip in the plug was not securely holding the wires in place, resulting in the earth wire being pulled out of the earth pin and touching the live pin within the plug. This caused the whole metal casing of the dough mixer to become ‘live’ on the day Mr Tanha died.

“The cost of fixing this fault would have been less than a pound and taken just minutes to repair.

"It is such a tragic waste of a life that could so easily have been prevented.”

Owner of the takeaway shop Nisar Ahmad, 39, of Pembroke Place, Edgware, admitted two counts of health and safety breaches at the Old Bailey on Friday, October 12.

He was given an 11-month prison sentence suspended for two years and ordered to do 220 hours of unpaid work and to pay £3,000 for prosecution costs.

A charge of manslaughter was ordered to remain on file.

Comments(2)

harvey_uk says...
7:32pm Wed 17 Oct 12

2 years suspended what a joke the great British justice system is. What happened to the PAT testing, every business should have mandatory portable appliances electrical systems tested. How about certain food hygiene levels or be shutdown. How hard can it be to ensure the safety of employees and customers. A quick look at the ‘scores on the door’ of this place says ‘major improvement required’, 1 out of 5, a clear indicator of how this business was being run.

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NoToMob Member says...
8:12pm Wed 17 Oct 12

Unfortunately PAT testing would not have detected a faulty or missing cord grip / clamp, which resulted in the Earth wire being detached and touching the Live terminal in the first place.
This death like many others is due to ignorance of the dangers of electricity and poor design of an outdated means of connecting equipment to the electrical supply. I feel for the family for this unnecessary loss.

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