Sentencing over Buncefield explosion

Five companies have pleaded or been found guilty of health and safety failings that led to the explosion at the Buncefield Oil Storage Depot in December 2005. Forty-three people were injured in what the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Environment Agency described as the largest fire in peacetime Europe.

Sentencing took place on 16 July, when oil giant Total UK Ltd was fined £3.6 million with costs of £2.6 million; Hertfordshire Oil Storage Ltd, which is controlled by Total and Chevron, was fined £1.45 million with costs of £1 million; British Pipeline Agency Ltd was fined £300,000 plus costs of £480,000; and TAV Engineering Ltd and Motherwell Control Systems 2003 Ltd were each fined £1,000 with costs of £500. The fines were for breaches of legislation including the Health and Safety at Work Act and the Control of Major Accident Hazard Regulations (COMAR).

In a joint statement the HSE and Environment Agency said: “These companies had failed to protect workers, members of the public and the environment. The scale of the explosion and fire at Buncefield was immense and it was miraculous that nobody died. Unless the high hazard industries truly learn the lessons, then we may not be that fortunate in future.”