Deadly cable 'clearly labelled'

Michael Adamson touched a live wire as he worked at JJB Sports in Dundee

An electrician has described clearly labelling a cable that electrocuted a colleague as "not in use."

Michael Adamson, 26, from Bo'ness died after touching a live wire during the construction of a JJB fitness centre in Dundee in 2005.

Mitie Engineering Services (Edinburgh) Ltd is accused of contravening the Health and Safety at Work Act. Three senior employees are also on trial.

They deny the alleged offence was attributable to their neglect.

Cables switched

The charges against the company include failing to provide a safe system of working, training, supervision, risk assessment and resources; failing to test circuits and wires into a distribution board before they were made live; and failing to ensure the board was not live while employees worked on circuits connected to it.

Managing director William Mitchell, operations director Scott Wallace and technical services manager Ian Storrar deny the alleged offence was committed with their consent or connivance or was caused by their neglect.

Giving evidence at Dundee Sheriff Court, electrician Greg McManus said he had originally run the cable that Mr Adamson was working on.

He told the court it was originally labelled L33 and was to power turnstiles, but it was too short and another cable was used.

At that time, he said, he relabelled both ends of the cable as "not in use".

He told the court he was certain he did this and could not explain how one end came to be connected to the distribution board, making it live.

The trial continues.