EAC fined €8,000 for health and safety breaches

The electricity authority of Cyprus (EAC) was fined €8,000 by the Nicosia district court after the Department of Labour Inspection found it had violated occupational health and safety at work, the court announced on Tuesday.

The authority was fined for several breaches relating to the minimum health and safety standards including use of work equipment, the management of safety and health at work, and the occupational safety and health laws, which caused injury to an employee of another company and endangered its own employees as well.

Specifically, the district court ruled EAC had failed to maintain an oil switch in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions, which resulted in an explosion when the equipment was switched on.

The court also said the electricity authority had failed to provide adequate information and instructions to its employees who performed maintenance work on the substation’s electrical distribution equipment so that the employees would be aware both of the proper way to maintain the oil switches, and of the risks associated with their maintenance.

Finally, the EAC was found guilty of failing to implement an appropriate safety and risk management system including preventive and protective measures to be taken to avoid personnel and equipment damage.