A FAULTY safety switch may have cost a mother-of-three her life.

An inquest at Bury heard how despite frantic attempts by workmates to save Margaret Shaw, the 41-year-old Tyldesley woman died almost instantly from horrendous injuries after her clothing became caught and she was dragged in to a mill machinery.

After last August's accident, six of the workers who tried to rescue their colleague from the warping machine, were treated in hospital for shock. The remainder of the workforce was sent home for the rest of the day.

A post mortem revealed Mrs Shaw died as a result of compression and severe damage to the spinal chord and stretching of the brain stem. The pathologist said the injuries would have resulted in a 'quick death'.

Mrs Shaw, of Manchester Road, Tyldesley, had been working at Andrew Textile Industries in Walshaw Road, Bury for five months when the accident happened. An experienced textile worker, she had been training on the machine which caused her death. Supervisor Susan Schofield described Mrs Shaw as a competent operator.

Corner Mr Matthew Cox heard workmates describe how from the moment Mrs Shaw shouted for help, to the time the machine stopped, was probably 20 seconds. But they said not everyone knew how to stop the machine in an emergency, and vital seconds may have been lost before Mrs Schofield hit the stop button.

Health and Safety Executive specialist inspector and mechanical engineer John McDonald said the machine had been bought second-hand and been built in the 1970s. He said at high speed, it would operate at 45 revs per minute, but it was revolving slowly at around ten rpm when the accident happened.

His inspection revealed a vital safety feature was defective at the time.

He said Mrs Shaw's weight would have been pushed downwards when she was drawn in to the machine. If the switch had operated properly, the mechanism would have stopped within one quarter of a revolution.

But because it was inoperative, the only way to stop the machine was to lift a safety bar upwards.

He added: "Had the bar been operating as it designed, it would have gone to the off position."

Mr McDonald confirmed that if someone had hit the emergency stop in five seconds rather than 20 seconds, it would have reduced the severity of the injuries Mrs Shaw suffered.

Verdict: Accidental death