Two men have tragically died and another left seriously injured after being trapped underneath the glass panel of a padel court while unloading it from a truck in Hertfordshire.
Yasir Ali, 34, and Muhammad Zafar, 33, were killed during the incident on Saturday 6 September in an overflow car park at Baldock Arena, the home of non-league Hitchin Town Football Club.
A third man working with the pair was taken to hospital and it is reported doctors are contemplating having to amputate one of his arms.
Two ambulances, a rapid response vehicle, an ambulance officer vehicle, a critical care paramedic car and a community first responder were sent to the scene, but both Ali and Zafar had died before they arrived.
The driver of the lorry from which the padel court components were being unloaded had remained in his cab and was unaware of the incident which had happened behind him until one of the five workers knocked on his door, according to the Daily Mail.
Ali from Luton and Zafar from Dunstable were both international students at the University of Hertfordshire and were originally from Pakistan.
The Padel Paper understands that the padel court was not set to be erected at the site. The car park where it was being unloaded is outside Hitchin Town FC’s stadium but is not operated by the club. The club has denied employing the men.
There will be an inquest at Hertfordshire’s coroner’s court once all details are released from a police investigation and the Health and Safety Executive’s inquiries.
The tragic incident took place just before this week’s release of updated industry guidelines on the construction of padel courts by the Sports and Play Construction Association (SAPCA) in conjunction with the LTA.
There have been increasing concerns in the industry about inexperienced operators installing courts and alleged cases of padel courts being constructed without planning permission.
Main pic: ITV News
