SIGNIFICANT changes to reporting and investigating serious incidents have been introduced at Yorkshire Water since a man died from severe burns two years ago.

The third day of an inquest into the death of Michael Jennings, 55, from Holme-on-Spalding-Moor, heard from Mark Nishapati, the company’s director of Health and Safety, who was appointed in October 2016 - 15 months after Mr Jennings’ died when sparks from an angle grinder he was using in a dry well “engulfed him in a fireball” as he attempted to remove corroded bolts from a valve.

Mr Nishapati outlined how the company has adopted a different procedure to categorising and investigating a near miss, while reports about the most serious incidents are sent out company wide.

This comes after the inquest highlighted a near miss in September 2014 when workmen at the same Tadcaster treatment site were tasked with removing pumps from the decommissioned lane Mr Jennings worked on.

When the workmen placed gas monitors in the lane, which used oxygen to treat effluent from Samuel Smiths brewery, they immediately alarmed and the job was abandoned until it was mechanically ventilated.

However, the workman responsible for issuing a permit for Mr Jennings was unaware the incident had taken place because the information had not been passed on to him. He approved the work, but said Mr Jennings had not made him aware he was going to use machinery.

Under the new system, Mr Nishapati said incidents like the one in September 2014 would have been categorised as a significant near miss and a full investigation would be authorised.

He said: “There are two ways which we communicate information. For very significant findings we put out a lessons learned bulletin...or I would even communicate on a video through our internal communications options.”

The inquest has heard from various witnesses from Yorkshire Water who criticised the online safeguarding system, which is used to find information on specific incidents, and Mr Nishapati confirmed it was “absolutely recognised that it’s not the most user friendly”.

The inquest continues.