Haut du Mont: Gas workers convicted of manslaughter

Two gas workers have been found guilty of unlawfully killing ten people following a fatal explosion in St Helier in December 2022.

After 25 hours of deliberation, a jury has unanimously found Neil Armstrong (58) and John Wright (60) guilty of ten counts of gross negligence manslaughter.

Island Energy has also been unanimously convicted of breaching the health and safety law.

Sentencing will take place at a later date.

The jury has been unable to reach a unanimous verdict in respect of a third gas worker, Lee Ward (59).

They will continue deliberations, with the judge instructing them to reach a majority decision.

Ten residents of Haut du Mont lost their lives in December 2022, after a gas leak caused the block of flats to explode at around 4am on 10 December 2022.

They were Raymond Brown, Louise de Almeida, Romeu de Almeida, Sylvia Ellis, Derek Ellis, Kenneth Ralph, Jane Ralph, Peter Bowler, William Marsden, and Kathleen McGinness.

On 9 December 2022, Island Energy workers Neil Armstrong and John Wright were tasked with decommissioning the gas supply to Haut du Mont.

No properties in Haut du Mont were using gas at the time, but gas was still flowing up to the pipes, stoppered by Emergency Control Valves (ECVs) and plugs.

Armstrong was the supervising gas engineer of the works, and Wright was a team leader.

During excavation work, the pipe was cut in the wrong place - the court heard they 'took a guess' without 'sufficient excavation.'

That meant gas supply was also lost elsewhere, including at the St Helier Yacht Club, and the club reported it around midday.

Despite it not being an emergency, Armstrong felt pressured to restore the supply because the club had a big event that evening.

He then went back to Haut du Mont at around 2:30pm to check the gas cupboards, but was distracted by making several phone calls and messages during that time, and left at least one ECV open and unplugged.

Armstrong and Wright then skipped a crucial part of the process, carrying out a pressure test, which would've identified any gas leak within minutes.

Armstrong instructed Wright to get it back on, and Wright failed to challenge this, despite knowing the test's importance.

Armstrong also lied to two senior managers by saying he had done the test.

At around 8:30pm on 9 December, a 14-year-old boy called 999 to report a strong smell of gas outside Haut du Mont on Pier Road.

As fire crews were on their way to the scene, Haut du Mont resident Louise De Almeida also called to report a strong smell of gas outside AND inside her flat.

Crucially, that report of smelling gas INSIDE her flat was not passed on to the fire service. If it had, the flats would've been evacuated.

The fire crew did not go to Ms De Almeida's flat, with Fire Commander John Lloyd saying it was because their information was that there was no gas in the properties.

Three firefighters were tasked with going in opposite directions with gas detectors, but they were set to detect methane, not propane or LPG, the gas used in Jersey.

Officers also reported that the smell of gas had 'dissipated' and they left the scene just after 9pm.

The States Employment Board is due to be sentenced in December after pleading guilty to two health and safety charges.

There was a leak, and hours later, an unknown spark ignited the gas, and the block of flats exploded.

When the explosion happened, Kathleen McGinness safely evacuated another resident and called 999.

"Something dreadful's happened. The windows have exploded. My windows have all come in. There's something all over the outside... Pier Road. "

Tragically, Ms McGinness died on Christmas Day as a result of the injuries she suffered.