A workman was saved from a fall after his colleague grabbed him by his belt.

The men were repairing a roof at the Harwich School in Hall Lane, Dovercourt, about 8.40am yesterday, when one of them, a 36-year-old of Romford, fell towards an uncovered skylight.

Ambulance technician Paul Lewis said: "The 36-year-old started to fall but before he had gone right through his colleague managed to grab his belt and stop him going any further.

"Had he not acted so quickly his colleague would probably have fallen perhaps three or four metre which might have caused severe injuries."

The man suffered bad bruising around his rib area and was taken to Colchester General Hospital for an X-ray to determine if he had cracked any.

The school declined to comment, as did the contractors, Breyer Group PLC. The firm will now meet with health and safety officials to invetigate what happened.

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Published Wednesday, December 22, 2004

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