Council in school with a fine after carbon monoxide leaks punished

The East Dunbartonshire Council owed the incident in the Balmuildy Primary School in February 2020. A number of employees and students who attended school on February 19, 2020 stated that they feel sick and record symptoms such as headaches and nausea. During the day, several students were sent home and the employees had to take medication to relieve the symptoms. The following day, testing a gas leak showed a high degree of carbon monoxide that are available in areas of the school. The building was immediately evacuated.

An investigation by the health and security manager (HSE) in connection with the investigators of the Gas Safe register showed that one of the two auxiliary gas boilers present at the location brought carbon monoxide into the boiler room and the school building. The investigation showed that this was due to a lack of maintenance.

If the errors with the boiler were found before the incident by the necessary routine expectation, it would have been classified as immediately dangerous in accordance with the uncertain situations of the gas industry (GUSP). This would have been necessary to separate the gas boiler until the boiler was repaired for further use.

HSE offers free instructions to the service damage: Security in the installation and use of gas systems and devices (devices (devicesPDF))) .The guide states that an effective maintenance of devices usually includes a ongoing program of regular/regular inspections and all necessary remedial measures.

In the absence of the instructions from the specific manufacturers, effective maintenance should minimally include:

• Examination of the physical condition and the safe functioning of devices;
• Installation pipe;
• Ventilation and each section for deterioration;
• Perform performance tests; And
• take the necessary remedial measures.

The EAST Dunbartonshire Council of Strathkelvin Place, Kirkintilloch, is guilty of violating the Ordinance on Regulation 35 of the GASSISCHUTION (installation and use) in 1998. The Council was occupied on March 20, 2025 on March 20, 2025 with a fine of 13,333 GBP and a sacrificial surcharge of 1000 GBP.

After the hearing, the HSE inspector Stuart Easson said: “This is the second time in five years that the East Dunbartonshire Council has received a significant fine in order not to protect employees and children in a primary school under their control.”

“Although nobody suffered serious effects during this incident, we hope that this public prosecutor will prove that HSE does not hesitate to take measures and that failures of this kind are simply not acceptable.”