ECJ EUROPEAN Cleaning Journal

The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) in the UK has issued a safety alert over the dangers of telescopic pop-up toilets.

It says it is imperative that anyone cleaning, maintaining or inspecting pop-up toilets should have received adequate health and safety information beforehand. And the same rule applies to anyone tasked with fitting or maintaining engineering control measures.

The alert follows the death of 60-year-old Kevin Holding in London in January who was crushed by a pop-up loo when carrying out maintenance work on the device. He was working on a UriLift urinal in London's Cambridge Circus when the accident occurred.

Around 25 firefighters attended the scene and attempted to free the victim, who was trapped below street level beneath the hydraulic urinal. Holding sustained crush injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.

"Duty-holders should assess each facility to identify risks associated with pop-up toilet chamber access, cleaning and maintenance activities," says the HSE. "You must reduce the risk to the lowest reasonably practicable level by taking preventative measures." A simple solution would be the use of a pit prop, HSE suggests.

Stainless steel telescopic urinals were first introduced to London in 2002 in a bid to solve the city's street urination problem. They stand two metres high and arise from the ground at 1900 hours every night. And they disappear at 0600, after which they are stored underground.

The units are linked to the main sewerage system which means that unlike portable urinals - which need to be physically emptied - they can be flushed in the same way as a regular toilet.