A workman was rushedto hospital after being trapped beneath a load of aluminium dropped from his crane.

Joe McNally, a crane driver, was freed by fire crews with special rescue equipment after two containers of metal fell on him at his work at Seco Aluminium, Crittall Road, Witham, last night.

Mr McNally, who is said to be aged 50 and from Witham, was taken to the intensive care unit at Broomfield Hospital, Chelmsford, and treated for serious injuries. His condition was today "stable".

David Beale, managing director of Seco, which has been operating at the site for more than 30 years, said: "We shall be investigating this thoroughly.

"We have had very few problems with only one or two accidents in a 12-month period where someone has had to have time off work.

"We work very carefully on Health and safety matters. We do not know what caused this incident but at the moment it does not seem to have been the fault of a defective crane."

Mr Beale added: "We contacted his wife straight away and have been to the hospital to see him. We will be going again later today to see what we can do to help him and his wife."

The Health and Safety Executive has been informed and will be carrying out an investigation.

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