Boss guilty over workers' deaths

The owner of a paint stripping company has been found guilty of the manslaughter of two of his employees after they were overcome by chemical fumes.

Mumtaz Hussain and Ghulum Sarwar died while working on the night shift at ENG Industrial Services on the Blacklake Industrial Estate in West Bromwich in August 1999.

Ian Morris, the owner of ENG, had denied manslaughter but admitted failing to ensure the health and safety of his workers and offences relating to the control of hazardous substances.

The case at Birmingham Crown Court was adjourned while a pre-sentence report is prepared.

Stripping paint

Mr Hussain, 40, from Birmingham, was an experienced worker at the factory.

His nephew Mr Sarwar, 22, also from the city, had been working at ENG for just two days at the time of his death.

The company was stripping paint from aluminium wheels using a mixture of chemicals.

The men who died were found in a rest room by workers turning up for the day shift.

Toxic fumes

Toxic fumes had escaped from the processing area in a severe leak which contaminated the whole site.

An earlier inquest found the men had died from dychlora methane poisoning.

This fast-acting asphyxiant depresses the central nervous system, leading to a loss of consciousness, and eventually death.

The court heard that Mr Morris had not sufficiently assessed the risks posed to his workers and it was not enough to provide protective masks, boots and gloves.