Mother Killed by Falling Bricks on School Run, Trial Hears

A mother of one was killed by a pile of bricks that fell from a crane while she was on the school run, a court has been told. Michaela Boor, 28, died from catastrophic brain injuries on March 29, 2018, after a pallet holding more than two tonnes of bricks dropped on her head.

Boor had been walking along Burdett Road in Bow, east London, after dropping her son at school when the incident occurred. She was with Chelsea Mustafa, who managed to avoid the bulk of the falling load, sustaining only minor injuries. Boor, however, was struck directly and died in hospital the following day.

Higgins Homes, the principal contractor and designer of the building project where the incident took place, is charged with corporate manslaughter and a violation of the Health and Safety at Work Act. Four construction workers are also on trial at the Old Bailey in London.

Alexander McInnes, 34, Dawood Maan, 61, Stephen Coulson, 69, and Thomas Anstis, 69, each face a count of gross negligence manslaughter and a health and safety offense. Prosecutors stated that Boor and Mustafa were on their way to local shops for groceries, as it was Boor's birthday the next day.

Thomas Anstis served as the senior site manager and temporary work co-ordinator for Higgins Homes, overseeing the site and subcontractors. Stephen Coulson was the director of Coulson Lifting Services, contracted by Higgins Homes to plan and control lifting operations. Prosecutors noted that Coulson was not required to be permanently on site but should have made periodic visits.

Dawood Maan was the crane supervisor, a self-employed contractor for Coulson Lifting Services, responsible for overseeing lifting operations. Alexander McInnes, a self-employed crane operator working for London Tower Cranes, was operating the crane at the time of the incident. All four men deny the charges against them. The trial is ongoing.