Unsafe working conditions

A man is being held over the death of a construction worker on the £211 million Docklands Light Railway (DLR) extension in east London.

The suspect was arrested "on suspicion of manslaughter" after a worker was crushed by machinery on a former surface railway route between Canning Town station and Stratford International.

The move to convert the line for DLR use is a joint venture between Skanska and GrantRail.

As the route runs alongside London Underground tracks, West Ham Tube station was forced to close for about two hours.

A Transport for London spokesman said: "A full investigation into the incident is being undertaken by the main contractors Skanska GrantRail and by the Health and Safety Executive. Our thoughts are with the man's family and colleagues."

A statement released by Skanska added: "The Skanska GrantRail joint venture regrets that it can confirm that an individual working for a sub-contractor to the joint venture was involved in an accident and tragically, the individual has died.

"The matter is under investigation and it would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this time."

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Colin Ettinger, Partner at leading Law Firm Irwin Mitchell who represents many victims of unsafe working environments said: "All employers have a duty of care to employees and must ensure that correct training and safety procedures are in place to prevent incidents such as this. We welcome a full investigation into this tragic incident."