Trainee painter, 24, dead after being electrocuted by power line as stepdad sentenced
A 24-year-old father to be has died after a metal ladder he was moving came into contact with an overhead power cable.
Connor Lambert had been working as a trainee painter with a colleague, as well as his stepdad Daniel Watton, 50, at the gable end of a house in Chester, Cheshire on 29 July 2024.
While moving the metal ladder it either touched the overhead power line or passed closed enough that an arc formed, fatally electrocuting Connor.
Connor's colleague was also carrying the ladder when it became live, and suffered burns to his hands, feet, and stomach from the electric shock.
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Now, Connor's partner Megan McCann has spoken about her heartbreaking loss, which she said she suffered just weeks before she gave birth to their daughter.
“Connor was amazing. He had the cheekiest grin and would light up any room he was in - he was so funny," she said. “He was a caring person who always put everyone else first.
Megan recalled how she was 32 weeks pregnant, and had spoken to Connor on the phone just minutes before finding out that he had died, and had also taken delivery of a moses basket for their child.
“I never thought I would have buried the love of my life and then given birth to our daughter 23 days later," she said.
Megan said that they had been trying to start a family for around three years, and Connor was 'over the moon when we found out I was pregnant'.
Now Megan faces the heartbreaking prospect of telling her daughter what happened.
“She knows daddy is in the sky and at night he shines as a star," said Megan. "I’m making sure she knows who Connor is, but at some point, I will have to explain to her what happened."
She added: “I will never get over Connor’s death - I still feel angry, numb and feel a massive part of my world has gone.”
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the work at height had not been properly planned, supervised, or carried out.
Mr Watton had been trading as Inside Out Painters and Decorators Property Maintenance at the time.
In a hearing at Warrington Magistrates Court on 6 October 2026 Daniel Watton, of Bean Bank, Wollerton, Market Drayton, was sentenced to 16 weeks in prison suspended for 12 months, and ordered to pay £10,645 in costs after pleading guilty to breaching Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.
HSE guidance says that when working at height can't be avoided it has to be planned, supervised, and carried out properly in order to minimise the risk.
The plan of work had involved using a tower scaffold and ladder in order to paint the property's exterior, including one part which had a glass canopy, but this was not safe or suitable.
The work also deviated from this plan in practice, as ladders were used throughout the work, and the HSE said that the methods of work and equipment were not suitable, and the dangers of nearby power lines had not been controlled or adequately assessed.
Connor's dad Craig West said: "This experience has changed me, my emotions, my temperament and my outlook on life."
He added: “After the findings of the inquest I find Connor’s accident even more tragic as it should have so easily been avoided."
HSE inspector Keeley Eves said: “This tragic incident meant a father never got to meet and hold his baby daughter.
“The fact it could and should have been prevented with proper planning and control measures, makes it all the more stark."
Kit Roberts