Decision on Didcot charges due next year

Detectives investigating the Didcot Power Station collapse in which four men died will make a decision on whether to bring charges in the case next year, Thames Valley Police has said.

Coleman & Company employees Ken Cresswell, 57, Chris Huxtable, 34, John Shaw, 61, and Mick Collings, 53, died when the 10-storey high boiler house at the former power station collapsed as they were preparing it for demolition.

Five others were also injured in the incident.

It will be the 10th anniversary of the tragedy on 23 February.

Thames Valley Police, which has been conducting a joint investigation with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), said it expects to complete its inquires next year.

“If, at the conclusion of our joint investigation with HSE, the requisite legal test is met, the investigation team will formally request a charging decision from the CPS before the end of next year,” it said in a statement yesterday (18 December).

The families of the four victims have been informed, it said.

Deputy chief constable Ben Snuggs said: “We are confident our dedicated and complex investigation into the partial collapse of Didcot Power Station will be complete next year.

“Our joint investigation with HSE is almost unprecedented in its scale, and we have also been working closely with the CPS to enable us to get to this position.

“We remain fully committed to fairly and thoroughly investigating offences including corporate manslaughter, gross negligence manslaughter and Health and Safety at Work Act offences, while supporting the victims’ families by keeping them updated, along with all witnesses and interested parties.”

To date, the investigation team said it has collated and analysed more than 6,500 exhibits, 90,000 images and 230,000 digital media artefacts.

Over 180 hours of video-recorded witness and suspect interviews have been conducted, in addition to the 2,839 statements taken, the police said.

“We are currently completing the final interviews with suspects and key witnesses, while continuing to gather expert evidence, and additional specialist opinion has been requested,” Thames Valley Police added.

Coleman & Company, now known as Colemans, has repeatedly said in its accounts that it does not believe it was responsible for the cause of the incident.