Woman speaks out after 100kg steel beam falls on her at work
A British woman has spoken out after a workplace injury left her with life-changing injuries.
In June 2024, Natalie McCreith was dismantling a steel temporary structure for a luxury hotel in Surrey when a strap holding up a 100kg steel beam gave way, crushing the 40-year-old underneath.
Natalie suffered devastating injuries from the incident, including multiple back fractures, a punctured lung, broken ribs and a broken leg, waking up paralysed from the waist down.
Describing the incident as the 'most painful thing' in her entire life, the former outdoor sports instructor said: "I remember being on the floor and it felt like my legs were floating in the sky. It was the most painful thing I have ever been through in my entire life.
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"I couldn’t see the bottom of my legs, but my manager’s face was grey. I didn’t even know that the bone was sticking out of my leg."
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) later found that the ratchet strap - a strong fabric band used to secure heavy items - used to lower the beam was not fit for purpose and failed.
iSkate Limited, the company which Natalie had been employed by for 14 years, was later found to have failed in its job to ensure that the dismantling of the internal steel frame was properly planned and carried out safely.
"Every shred of my dignity was gone."
After being airlifted to hospital, Natalie was airlifted to a hospital in South London, where she underwent surgery to have metal rods inserted into her back and left leg as well as a blocker on her ribs.
Unable to walk, the Liverpool native had to be hoisted out of bed and bathed while doctors feared that she may never walk again.
Two years on from the accident, Natalie is now able to walk with the use of a cane thanks to extensive rehabilitation, which includes daily physiotherapy, hydrotherapy, acupuncture, and psychology.
However, Natalie has been left dealing with extensive nerve pain, saying that her injury has changed her life forever.
"I have to live with the nerve pain forever. I think that is the hardest part of the whole thing," she said.
Prior to the accident, Natalie had enjoyed hiking and rock climbing, activities which she is no longer able to do. She also fears that she will never be able to go back to work, as the pain makes her unreliable and she has to regularly nap from fatigue.
"I am a very positive person, but it tests every single part of who you are and what you are," Natalie said.
"It is like having to change your whole life from moving at the pace of a jaguar to a tortoise."
iSkate Limited and director fined after admitting regulation breach
Following an HSE investigation, iSkate Limited and its company director Neil Munn were taken to court.
iSkate Limited pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 16(1) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, receiving a £12,000 fine and an order to pay £6,949 in costs at a hearing at Guildford Magistrates’ Court on July 28, 2026.
Meanwhile Munn, who was on site at the time and made the decision to use the ratchet strap, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 37 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, and received a community order with 75 hours of unpaid work to be completed.
Responding to the trial outcome, Natalie revealed she felt the community service issued to Munn didn't feel fair.
"I had worked for Neil Munn for 14 years and we had an amazing rapport and an amazing relationship. We were really close and we really trusted each other," she said.
"My whole world has been turned upside down and I am in so much pain daily. Seventy-five community hours doesn’t feel very just. When I found out it was really heartbreaking."
Brenna Cooper