Safety pledges given to coroner who warned further lives at risk after death of stoneworker who cut engineered stone kitchen worktops

Their overriding message is a commitment to better safety provisions in the workplace. 

Senior Coroner for West London, Lydia Brown is considering the death of Wessam Al Jundi who worked as a stone mason at Yes Marble Ltd in west London from May 2016 to April 2020. The company is no longer trading. 

Wessam was originally from Syria but had lived in Ealing, London since 2015. 

In 2021, he was diagnosed with acute silicosis and died in from the disease in Harefield Hospital on 22 May 2024.  

In November 2024, the coroner took the step of releasing a prevention of future deaths report, a step generally taken once a full inquest has concluded.  In the report, the coroner indicated that silicosis was the cause of Wessam’s death. 

The report called for urgent action to improve workers’ safety and was sent to authorities and organisations including the Health and Safety Executive. It was also sent to the following government departments: The Department of Health & Social Care and The Ministry of Housing Communities & Local Government.
 
It set out the following concerns over Wessam’s death and the potential for future deaths in similar circumstances:  

• Wessam presented with an untreatable lung condition probably caused by exposure to Respirable Crystalline Silica (RCS) in his workplace; 
• Evidence suggests Wessam worked in completely unsafe conditions; 
• Exposure appears to have commenced in May 2016, and he was diagnosed with silicosis in 2021, “a mere 5 years after (his) initial exposure”; 
• Wessam’s death demonstrates the emergence of a severe progressive accelerated form of silicosis;   
• In 2024, Australia banned these engineered stone products; 
• A number of UK patients currently await lung transplants due to RCS exposure; 
• The last two decades have seen rapid growth in the use of engineered stone. 

The coroner goes on to say that many companies specialising in the finishing process of working with this product (engineered stone) have a small number of employees and there appears to be an absence of safe working conditions, with no adequate water suppression systems for the dust created, inadequate respiratory personal protection equipment and absent or inadequate ventilatory systems. The coroner stated that these put the workforce at risk of death due to untreatable lung conditions.

In its response, the Health and Safety Executive re-iterated its commitment to tackling the risks posed by working with high silica content stone. In January 2025, the Health and Safety Executive issued updated guidance on working with engineered stone.  

The Worktop Fabricators Federation, which says its objective is to promote good working practices and policies for health and safety in the workplace, highlighted the importance of organisations following the law and workers being given appropriate training and protective equipment. 

Calls for increased compliance and enforcement activities to ensure that stoneworkers are kept safe were made by The Agglomerated Stone Manufacturers Association in its response. 

Organisations issued with a prevention of future deaths report are compelled by statutory duty to respond, however as of 19 November 2025, none of the central government departments had replied to the coroner. 

The inquest into Wessam’s death is currently on hold, as the Health and Safety Executive continues its own investigation. 

Wessam’s family are represented by solicitor Andrew Cooper from the silicosis team at the law firm Leigh Day.  

The firm represents a growing number of stoneworkers diagnosed with silicosis after cutting and grinding engineered stone kitchen worktops. 
 
Wessam’s widow, Malak Al Safade said: 
 
“My husband had worked with stone for many years yet within five years of starting to cut engineered stone he lost his life. The coroner has said he was working in terrible conditions with dust all around him and without the proper safety equipment. Sadly, none of us knew at the time that this would cost him his life. More must be done straight away to protect stoneworkers before other families have to go through the terrible pain we are going through.”

Leigh Day solicitor Andrew Cooper said: 
 
“Wessam’s tragic death is just one of a growing number of cases we are dealing with as more and more stoneworkers become gravely ill after working with engineered stone. Our clients have described working in dust filled rooms with no windows and no effective dust extraction equipment or respirators. The coroner took the step of releasing this PFD report ahead of the actual inquest. This just goes to show how serious the risks are for workers and why urgent action is needed to ensure they are adequately protected from this lethal dust.” 
 
Jeremy Hyam KC of 1 Crown Office Row Chambers is instructed to represent the family at the inquest.