BOSSES at a Selby area power station, where a worker plunged 70ft to his death, have admitted failing to maintain adequate safety at the plant.

Andrew Bason, 42, died when the staircase on which he was working at Eggborough Power Station came away from the wall and collapsed.

At Selby Magistrates Court yesterday, Eggborough Power Ltd pleaded guilty to two offences under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

Eggborough director, Chris Davies, apologised at the inquest to Mr Bason's family for what he called a "tragic accident"

The firm will be sentenced next month.

Mr Bason was repairing chipped concrete in one of the plant's precipitator houses when the accident occurred on July 29, 2003.

The precipitator removes ash from the flue gas before releasing it into the atmosphere through the chimney stack.

Mr Bason, a father of two from Askern, Doncaster, was declared dead at the scene, despite desperate rescue attempts by the station's first-aiders. He had worked as a general labourer at the plant for four years.

An inquest last year heard that fears had been raised over the safety of the staircase nearly three months before the accident, but nothing had been done.

Michael McArdle, a process support leader at the plant, said he had asked for it to be fixed in early May 2003, as it was coming away from the wall of the precipitator.

He told the inquest he had specified on the station's computer system that the job should be done within 24 hours, but for nearly three months between his request and Mr Bason's death, no action was taken.

Mr Davies said the station, which employs about 300 people, had overhauled its system for fixing maintenance problems and had replaced staircases similar to that which collapsed.

At the hearing yesterday, Mike Shepherd for the power station entered guilty pleas to both charges, and asked for an adjournment so that the case could be heard in full on one day.

Presiding magistrate Neil Sutcliffe adjourned it until February 28, saying: "It is sad that we are not able to go any further today and it prolongs the problems and agonies as far as the family are concerned, but it seems to be the right way to carry on to the future."

Updated: 09:46 Wednesday, January 04, 2006