Teenager crushed to death after 18 tonnes of building material plunges on top of him

Christopher Cassaniti was crushed to death when over 18 tonnes of building material fell from collapsing scaffolding at a building site in Macquarie Park, New South Wales, Australia. Co-worker Kahled Wehbe was also trapped and sustained serious injuries in the devastating accident.

After the death of Mr Cassaniti, 18, from Sydney, GN Residential Construction lost its contractor licence following the company's guilty plea to offences under Australia's Work Health and Safety Act. It was fined £480,000 (AUS$900,000).

Heartbroken mum, Patrizia Cassaniti, told Australian broadcaster 7 NEWS: "I try to think that he's on a holiday somewhere, or he's moved away from home."

She added: "Christopher was such a beautiful kid and died so unnecessarily in totally avoidable circumstances. I will never ever accept how he died."

Christopher's parents have said more needs to be done to hold those responsible to account.

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Mrs Cassaniti said that changing Australian law in relation to industrial manslaughter is now one of her top priorities.

She added: "When someone gets killed in a car, it's manslaughter straight away... but there's no question asked why are workers going to work and dying and no one is culpable for their death?

"I can't change what happened to my son, I can't change the outcome... All I can do is hopefully change the future."

Australian business body, NSW Fair Trading, has permanently disqualified GN Residential Construction from operating.

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The company's director also received a 10 year-long disqualification after the accident in April 2019, according to 7 NEWS.

Christopher's father, Robert Cassaniti, said: "The anniversaries and birthdays come past and you think about it and it just gets harder every day."

Sophie Cotsis, New South Wales Work Health and Safety Minister, extended her deepest sympathies to the families of those affected by the "tragic" incident.

She added: "The conviction and disqualification should serve as a warning to all contractors to maintain a strong focus on safety on their worksites."

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Synergy Scaffolding Services pleaded guilty to one offence under Australia's Work Health and Safety Act and was fined £1million (AUS$2,000,000).

District Court Judge Andrew Scotting found in November last year that workers were put in "significant peril" and the collapse was the result of a number of events, including the unauthorised removal of building ties.

Mr Scotting is quoted by ABC News as saying: "This case should serve as a telling reminder that unsafe acts on a building site can and do lead to catastrophic consequences."

He is also reported to have said that between early March 2019 and the day of the collapse, the company knew the scaffolding was "grossly overloaded".

During last year's hearing, Judge Scotting acknowledged Christopher's family continue to suffer great heartache.

He said Christopher, who had celebrated his 18th birthday days before his death, was a young man who any employer would be proud to have.

The judge also noted Mr Wehbe continued to be affected by "the horror of that moment", according to ABC News.

GN Residential Construction and Synergy Scaffolding Services have been approached for comment.