Island Energy workers face manslaughter charges over Haut du Mont explosion

During a trial at the Royal Court, jurors heard allegations that three Island Energy workers made a “conscious decision” to bypass essential gas safety protocols prior to the Haut du Mont explosion on December 10, 2022. The explosion resulted in ten fatalities.

Neil Armstrong, John Wright, and Lee Ward each face ten counts of gross negligence manslaughter. The prosecution alleges the team performed “exceptionally badly” on the day before the tragedy, including cutting the wrong pipe while attempting to decommission the gas supply and failing to conduct a fundamental pressure test after reconnecting the network.

Former asset delivery manager Mark Wheeldon testified that the work “went against all the codes” and that the failure to perform a pressure test would have immediately identified the pipe integrity issues. It is further alleged that Armstrong left an emergency control valve “open and unplugged,” leading to the fatal leak. Island Energy denies two alleged breaches of the Health and Safety at Work (Jersey) Law 1989.