Ray's foresight prevents serious eye injury

30th May 2006

Safety conscious Ray Matthews has been praised by his company after his awareness prevented him receiving a serious eye injury.

Ray, a 38 year old grounds maintenance operator with Sembcorp Utilities UK, was struck by a stone the size of a golf ball thrown from the wheels of a lorry while driving a grass cutter along a road at the Wilton International site.

However, his foresight in following company procedures by wearing protective safety glasses saved the day, leaving him shaken but unhurt with only a deep scratch on the lens of the glasses.

He said: “I’m a very lucky man. The impact of the stone threw me backwards, but had it not been for the safety glasses I could so easily have lost my eye.

“We’re always being reminded of the constant need for safety and the importance of wearing the right protective equipment. That message really hits home when an incident like this happens – you’ve got to expect the unexpected.”

Now, Ray of Tunstall Avenue, Billingham has given talks to groups of his colleagues about his “near miss” in an attempt to share the learning throughout the 600 person organisation.

Tony Lewis, Sembcorp’s Vice President of Services, who has overall responsibility for safety, presented Ray with a special certificate at a ceremony on the site.

He said: “Ray’s proactive approach to safety has really paid dividends in this situation and he is a shining example to all our employees of the need to make safety the top priority in everything we do.”

Meanwhile, Uvex, the Surrey-based company which makes the protective glasses used by Sembcorp, was delighted to hear its product had stood up to the tough test.

Ken Evans, Sales Manager of Uvex, said: “You only have one pair of eyes and it is important to protect them – especially in the workplace.”

Photo Caption: Tony Lewis, Sembcorp’s Vice President of Services (L) and Ray Matthews holding the safety spectacles.