A roofing contractor escaped with just minor bumps, bruises and a small cut to his head after falling around 30 feet when scaffolding collapsed at a castle on the outskirts of Dundee.
Lee Cooper, 47, of LG Cooper Roofing, said he had landed on his feet after jumping away from the scaffolding tower as it fell from the rear of Powrie Castle, Emmock Road, at lunchtime on Thursday.
He was working with employee Kevin Morrison, 47, when the tower became dislodged.
Shortly after arriving home from hospital last night, he played down his lucky escape which left him with just a cut to the head which he thinks he sustained by being struck as he fell.
“I’m absolutely fine,” he said. “It was a bit of a minor incident really, compared to what it could have been.
“We were working at the back of the house. The ground is a bit higher there and there is a grassy bank. I just jumped when it started to go and landed on my feet. I’ve got a bit of a bruise on my calf.
“We were adjusting the alloy scaffolding to get it up to the gutter level. I got some stitches and was kept in the hospital for a few checks, but I’m absolutely fine.
“Obviously I’d rather it didn’t happen and we will have a discussion about how it happened. We take health and safety incredibly seriously.”
Mr Morrison was working on the roof when the scaffolding gave way and had to be rescued by firefighters.
Powrie Castle owners Tom and Sylvia Ashton said they were first alerted by shouts.
“We didn’t hear the scaffolding falling, I only heard him shouting,” Sylvia said. “I’m not sure which one it was. It could have been very, very nasty and he must have landed reasonably okay, but it wasn’t very nice at the time.”
Tom added: “The emergency services were on the scene very quickly. It was some turnout we were very impressed by them. We’re just pleased he’s okay.”
A police spokesman said: “We were alerted at 12.16pm by the ambulance service that a man had fallen after scaffolding at Powrie Castle had collapsed. One male was injured after falling around 30 feet and another male was trapped on the roof of the building. A 47-year-old man was taken by ambulance to Ninewells Hospital.”
Blue Watch manager Fraser Johnston, of Kingsway, said they attended and found a man being treated by an ambulance crew.
“It was a roofing company carrying out repairs to the roof at Powrie Castle. On arrival we saw that there was a scaffolding tower that had collapsed and the casualty was found on the grass embankment.
“We found a further male worker trapped on the roof and we rescued him from the rooftop of the building using a nine-metre ladder and a roof ladder.”