Father-of-two, 51, crushed to death in factory as he tried to unblock machinery
A FACTORY worker was crushed to death after being dragged into rollers, an inquest heard.
Father-of-two Javeed Ghaffar, 51, was trying to remove a blockage from the equipment used to make fibres for tea bags.
Mr Ghaffar, of Newsome, West Yorks, had been working a night shift at textiles firm IFG Drake, Golcar, in March 2017.
An inquest this week heard how he had “leant into the machine” to remove strands of fibre which had got trapped under the rollers when he was dragged in.
Shift Manager Paul Johnson said he “heard a scream” and then saw Mr Ghaffer “inside the machine”.
Despite attempts to resuscitate, the inquest heard how he suffered “terrible crush injuries” and died soon after the incident.
One of the firm’s managers, Antony Dearnley, described Mr Ghaffar as “very safety conscious”.
He said: “Gaffer was one of the most health & safety people you could meet. If he was not happy with anything, he would come and talk about it.”
Safety guards on machinery have been improved after a Health & Safety Executive probe.
The jury at Bradford coroner’s court ruled his death was an accident.
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Professional darts player Scott Waites was among those to pay tribute to Mr Ghaffer. He said he would miss his friend, who he often played darts with.
The former darts champion said: “Gaff was a really good mate and a very well liked bloke. He was a real gentle giant.
“He’ll be sadly missed by a lot of people.”
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