Friends pay tribute to Barrock farmer killed in tragic roof fall
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AN investigation is being carried out by the Health and Safety Executive after a Caithness farmer died following a roof fall.
John Jack, 71, was working at his farm at Inkstack, Barrock, on Sunday when the accident happened.
A spokeswoman for the HSE said: “All we can say is that we are investigating this incident along with Northern Constabulary.”
Mr Jack was taken to Caithness General Hospital in Wick but medics were unable to save him. His funeral will take place tomorrow and he will be buried in Olrig cemetery.
Tributes have been paid to Mr Jack who was described as “a very fine man” and a respected member of the local community.
Arnott Coghill, the Caithness NFU branch chairman, described his death as “a tragic accident”.
He added: “I knew John for a long, long time. He was a very fine man and very helpful to people.
“He was very knowledgeable, especially about sheep. He was well-known throughout the local farming industry and the wider community. My sympathy and condolences go out to the family at this sad time.”
Neighbour Michael Tait, of Inkstack Farm, heard the sad news when he returned from holiday on Wednesday.
“It was so unexpected. He was a very good neighbour and a very able farmer. Apart from his family, he lived for the farm – it was in his blood. He was a very hard worker and what has happened is absolutely tragic.”
Another neighbour, Hamish Pottinger of Greenland Mains, described Mr Jack as someone who “worked extremely hard”.
“Work was his life and his life was work but he was also a great family man,” he said.
Mr Jack, whose son-in-law and grandson worked on the farm, is survived by his wife, Sheila and daughters Karen, Alison, Kathleen and Lorna.
A report on his death has been submitted to the HSE.
Figures published by the HSE show the number of fatalities in agriculture are the highest of the main industrial sectors, including construction.
In the 10-year period from 1999
Of that number 245 (56 per cent) were self-employed; 140 (32 per cent) were employees; 51 (12 per cent) were members of the public and 19 were children under the age of 16.
The statistics show fewer than 1.5 per cent of the working population are employed in agriculture yet the sector is responsible for between 15 and 20 per cent of fatalities each year.
Twenty-six per cent of the deaths related to transport and 16 per cent occurred as the result of falling from a height.
In Scotland, nine of the 15 workplace fatalities that occurred between April 2010 and March 2011 were in agriculture.
Just last week, the NFU in Scotland said the death of another Caithness farmer was “a sad reminder” of the dangers faced by agricultural workers on a regular basis.
The NFU was commenting after a fatal accident inquiry into the death last year of 64-year-old Alexander Banks, who died from multiple injuries sustained by a stampeding cow.
