Worker Dies In Fall At Refinery

April 30, 2007 16:55 Source: ABC

Northern Territory Police are investigating the death of a worker at Alcan's Gove refinery in the territory's north-east earlier today.

Alcan says the 33-year-old man was killed when he fell from an elevated work platform about 11:30am ACST.

Another man was also injured in the accident and has been taken to Gove hospital.

The ABC understands both men worked for a Darwin company that subcontracts to Alcan.

Police say they will not be releasing any more information about the men until their families have been contacted.

It is not the first time a worker has died at Alcan's Gove refinery.

In 2004, a 47-year-old man was crushed to death when he fell into machinery.

A worker was also critically injured in 2005, when he was sprayed with searing bauxite and caustic soda, leaving him with burns to 60 per cent of his body.

Union representatives will start a collection tomorrow for the family of the killed worker.

Union NT spokesman Alan Paton says he hopes the investigation goes quickly so the family can have some closure.

"What we'll be doing is asking the guys to put their hands in their pockets and put some donations towards the family," he said.

"I'm also going to be asking Alcan to double that money, as well. Put in dollar for dollar."

Man forced to stand after pallet broke his leg

April 30, 2007 12:00am Source: The Courier Mail

A WORKER stood for almost an hour with his badly broken leg trapped in a pallet after an industrial accident at James Hardie in Carole Park this morning.

Camira fire station duty officer, Rob Walker, said the worker's leg became wedged in the pallet carrying fibro sheeting as a forklift came in to pick it up, around 2am.

He said the man who weighed 130kg had to stand for three quarters of an hour supported by workmates, as crews worked to free the leg.

'He was conscious and talkative throughout the ordeal... not bad when one of your legs is broken in several places,' said Mr Walker.

The worker was taken to the Princess Alexandra Hospital for surgery.

Workplace Health and Safety officers are expected to investigate the accident today.

Workplace Law my be under take over

Saturday Apr 28 16:20 AEST Source: AAP

The federal government's attempt to take over workplace safety laws in NSW would jeopardise workers and their families, the state government says.

Attending an International Day of Mourning service in Sydney for those killed in workplace accidents, NSW Industrial Relations Minister John Della Bosca said the takeover was an attack on basic safety standards.

Mr Della Bosca said the federal government had passed laws designed to prevent WorkCover inspectors in the states and territories from entering the workplaces of larger employers.

NSW had the most active workplace authority in the nation, backed by 313 inspectors, he said.

He said the Commonwealth's system was self-regulating with just a handful of inspectors covering the nation.

"The Commonwealth is attempting to weaken workplace safety, just as it weakened the protections in industrial relations under Work Choices," he said.

"Families have a fundamental right to go home safely at the end of the day.

"Most employers work hard to improve that record but we need strong laws to cope with the rogues who have little regard for the lives of workers and others in the workplace."

Asbestos campaigner Bernie Banton also attended the service, held at Reflection Park at Sydney's Darling Harbour.

Mr Banton said he himself had lost his older brother to a workplace accident.

"So many of us have been touched that are here today," he said.

"This really is a time for reflection on just how unsafe our workplaces are going to be if Work Choices continues to be a burden for all of us to carry.

"We really need to stand up and say we want the unions to have free access to the workplace."

Around 200 families and friends of people killed in workplace accidents attended the service, placing lilies and photographs in memory of their loved ones on the memorial statue.

Woman’s head caught in machine

26th April 2007 10:13:02 AM Source: Star News

A BERWICK woman suffered serious injuries after her head was caught in an unguarded machine last Friday.

The 35-year-old was working at a Braybrook bedding factory when the incident occurred about 8.15am.

She was in a stable condition after being treated for head injuries at The Alfred hospital.

WorkSafe inspectors are continuing to investigate the incident and have already issued three prohibition notices and nine improvement notices at the site.

Some of the notices related to the machine that injured the woman.

WorkSafe executive director John Merritt said the incident was another reminder of the dangers of unguarded machines.

“Business operators must understand they have well-established legal responsibilities to provide and maintain a safe workplace,” Mr Merrit said. “Guarding is one of the most basic ways to make machines safe, yet we frequently find dangerous, unguarded equipment in Victorian workplaces.

“All employers need to ensure machines in their workplaces are as safe as practicable. Dreadful injuries can be avoided.”

Casey and its residents have been involved in several workplace accidents this year.

A man was crushed to death in Narre Warren North in January when an excavator rolled off a trailer and pinned him to the ground, and a Devon Meadows man was killed in a workplace accident in February.

The 44-year-old was working at a hire yard in Dandenong South when he was struck by a machine and died.

“We urge workers and their employers to be active in making workplaces as safe as they can be,” Mr Merritt said.

“Discuss the known risks and those that can be anticipated. You don’t have to wait until tragedy strikes to make improvements.”

Fall victim in wait for help

April 26, 2007 Source: The Standard

A COBDEN man in his 60s had to wait about an hour-and-a-half for an air ambulance after he fell through a shed roof.

The man injured his hip and pelvis in the fall and  suffered suspected head injuries.

A WorkSafe spokesman said the fall may have been as far as eight metres.

An ambulance from Terang received the call to attend the rural property on Dingleys Road, just south of Cobden, at 10.50am.

An air ambulance was notified and dispatched from Bendigo at 11am but did not arrive until about 12.30pm.

A Rural Ambulance Victoria spokesman said the man was in a critical condition.

He was flown to The Alfred hospital where he was last night in a serious but stable condition. The man's name was not available last night.

A WorkSafe spokesman said it was unclear whether the accident would come under WorkSafe's jurisdiction but an investigator was sent to the scene and would continue inquiries into the incident. ``Falls from heights is the single biggest
cause of death in workplaces in Victoria,'' the spokesman said.

``If you fall from six to eight metres it doesn't matter whether you land on concrete or earth.

``Quite often those kind of falls result in death or paraplegia.''

He said people working at heights above two metres should ensure their safety by using a cherry-picker or scaffolding or some other safety device.

Police name worker killed at NT refinery

April 24, 2007 - 6:22PM Source: AAP

A worker killed in an industrial accident at an alumina refinery in the Northern Territory has been named by police.

Daniel Aaron Burman, 33, died when he plunged off an elevated platform at the Alcan Gove site in Nhulunbuy on the Gove Peninsula in east Arnhem Land.

The refinery is owned by Canadian Aluminium giant Alcan.

An injured co-worker was taken to Gove Hospital and later released.

Both men, believed to be employed by a contract company, were working at a fuel storage facility called Tank Farm when the accident happened about midday (CST) on Monday.

Alcan Gove site manager David Buick moved to reassure workers about safety.

"Alcan takes health and safety extremely seriously, but despite our best efforts a tragedy has occurred," he said.

Unions NT president Alan Paton voiced concern that all the circumstances of Mr Burman's death would not be made public.

Work safety officers, police and the NT Department of Primary Industry, Fisheries and Mines (DPIFM) are conducting their own investigations into why Mr Burman and his colleague fell.

"What we're finding with the Mines Management Act is that we don't get any information from those people where there is an accident," Mr Paton told the ABC.

"With Worksafe we've got a bit more of an open-door policy, so there's protocols in place.

"If we make a complaint we can get some information back to make sure these sorts of things don't happen in any other area."

In February last year, Alcan was fined $315,000 after the death of Denis Boyd, a contractor who was crushed by machinery while doing maintenance work at the Gove refinery in August 2004.

Alcan pleaded guilty to charges that it failed to meet its obligation to operate and maintain the refinery site to minimise risk to the health and safety of workers.

In January 2005, maintenance worker Paul Davey, 34, was badly burned when sprayed with caustic slurry in the refinery's mill slurry heating area.

Union calls for WorkSafe probe on mine fatality

Tuesday, 24 April 2007. 11:12 Source: AAP

Unions NT says it is concerned that all the circumstances of a man's death at the Alcan refinery at Gove may not be made public.

The Territory's Mining Department is investigating what caused the 33-year-old man and his colleague to fall from an elevated platform at the site yesterday.

The other man injured in the accident has since been released from Gove hospital. The ABC understands both men worked for a Darwin company that subcontracts to Alcan.

Unions NT president Alan Paton accused the Department of running a closed-door investigation policy.

"What we're finding with the Mines Management Act is that we don't get any information from those people where there is an accident," he said.

"With Worksafe we've got a bit more of an open door policy, so there's protocols in place.

"If we make a complaint we can get some information back to make sure these sorts of things don't happen in any other area."

Alcan's vice-president of Pacific operations, Alistair Field, says he is happy with his company's safety procedures.

"Safety is very important for us at Alcan and to me personally we've made some giant strides in the last couple of years," he said.

"We continue to work with the Department of Mines in a very close cooperation and make sure that we're actually improving our processes as we go through."

Northern Territory Police and the Mines Department are investigating the death.

The mine and alumina refinery is located at Nhulunbuy on the Gove Peninsula in east Arnhem Land.

Investigation begins into Alcan refinery death

Tuesday April 24, 3:46 pm Source: ABC Online

An investigation into the death of a man killed at the Northern Territory's Alcan Gove Refinery site yesterday has swung into action.

The 33-year-old died yesterday after he and another man fell from an elevated work platform.

The second man has now been released from hospital.

Two investigators from the territory's Mines Department will spend three days at the site interviewing those who were involved in the incident.

They will check whether proper procedures were followed and whether there was a breach of the Mines Management Act.

A WorkSafe representative is also on the site.

The vice-president of Pacific operations with Alcan, Alistair Field, says he sends his condolences to the victim's family and friends.

"At this stage we're obviously going to be working with the subcontracting company to make sure that we can support that family as much as possible," he said.

Mr Field has defended his company's safety procedures.

"The safety of our employees is obviously an extremely serious issue for us and it is our number one priority," he said.

Toll on truck drivers starts to show

April 24, 2007 12:00am Source: Sun Herald

TRUCKS are 2.7 times more likely than other vehicles to be involved in a fatal crash.

Also, according to the Transport Accident Commission, one in six fatal crashes on Victoria's roads involves trucks.

In the decade to last year, 689 people died in 594 truck crashes.

Another 245 people were seriously injured in those accidents and 4139 others were seriously injured in 3504 non-fatal truck crashes.

The often deadly impact of trucks was put into sharp focus by the death of three motorists in last month's horrific Burnley Tunnel inferno.

State Coroner Graeme Johnstone recently opened an inquest into the tunnel disaster.

The Herald Sun has learnt that a month before the tragedy, the Coroner joined a seemingly prescient push to make trucks safer.

In a DVD by Victoria's Transport Industry Safety Group, Mr Johnstone outlined the human cost of a major truck crash and said it was up to truck fleet owners to provide safe equipment.

He said the trauma of a major fatal truck crash to victims' families, witnesses, those in the crash, especially the truck driver (should he or she survive), would last the rest of their lives.

Industry insiders told the Herald Sun many deaths and injuries could be prevented if more trucks were fitted with modern safety features.

They said Australia's truck safety standards lagged behind Europe and North America, where such measures as anti-skid brakes, electronic braking, electronic stability control and electronic log books either were law or in common use.

All prime movers in Europe and North America have to be fitted with anti-lock braking systems (ABS). In Australia, only B-double prime movers and B-double trailers carrying dangerous goods need ABS.

Front under run protection -- a heavy metal bar that stops smaller vehicles being crushed under a prime mover -- is removed from trucks sold here by some European makers to make them lighter.

The bar is one of a raft of safety measures being recommended to truck buyers by the Transport Industry Safety Group, which includes the State Coroner, police, VicRoads, WorkSafe, the Transport Workers Union, the Victorian Transport Association and the TAC.

The group's DVD also says buyers should demand ABS; electronic braking and stability systems; and front, side and rear under run protection.

Airbags, adaptive cruise control to keep trucks a safe distance from other traffic and to warn when a truck is leaving its lane are also recommended.

"Safety can pay," TAC senior road safety manager David Healy said.

"These features not only reduce the likelihood of death and injury to drivers and other road users but lower truck repair and replacement costs and increase a truck's resale value."

The group's chairman, Transport Association chief Philip Lovel, urged operators not to wait for new safety laws.

On average Australia's truck fleet is 15 years old, with new trucks bought by long-haul operators often passed down to short-haul operators.

The group's vice-chairman, TWU boss Bill Noonan, said life-saving electronic stability control should be mandatory for all new trucks.

Safety experts say installing ESC on all vehicles could halve the number of fatal crashes.

Mr Noonan and Mr Lovel said in other safety moves 15,000 truck drivers had been tested for sleep apnoea, diabetes and hypertension.

Mr Noonan said it did not matter how many safety devices a truck had if the driver was tired, either through long hours or medical problems.

The National Transport Commission has called for comment on making ABS mandatory for all new prime movers and all trailers carrying dangerous goods.

Safety Practises not up to scratch

April 24, 2007 Source:AAP

INADEQUATE safety measures and systemic complacency within the CSIRO contributed to the death of a microbiologist who was trapped in a laboratory chamber with virtually no oxygen, a coroner has found.

Colleagues found the body of Set Van Nguyen, 44, more than 14 hours after he became locked inside a chamber leading to a liquid nitrogen room used to store disease and virus samples at the CSIRO's Australian Animal Health Laboratory in December 2001.

The father of two girls had been with the CSIRO for more than 13 years, and was considered to be a conscientious, diligent and careful worker.

He would have died within minutes of entering the airlock about 4.15pm on December 10, but staff only realised something was amiss when his wife, Luyen, arrived at the laboratory at 6.30am the next day because he had not returned home.

The Geelong Coroners Court heard Mr Nguyen may have entered the airlock to obtain a biological sample and to assess the room's air quality to update staff warning notices.

A message on a whiteboard and a post-it note declaring "low airflow" were used to warn staff that the room was unsafe. The room's oxygen level, displayed above the entrance to the chamber, was just 0.03 per cent.

Coroner Audrey Jamieson, who held the inquest in June last year, said yesterday Mr Nguyen's death was preventable, inexplicable and "can only be attributed to a level of complacency" at the laboratory.

"But Set Van Nguyen does not stand alone, there is evidence that complacency had become systemic in this workplace," she said.

"No one even knew that Set Van Nguyen was still in the building, let alone in the biological secure area."

Victorian Workcover Authority inspector James Chasser said employees should have been prevented from entering the airlock container from December 7, when problems with the air-handling system were first reported.

Mr Chasser told the inquest that human error and equipment failure had contributed to Mr Nguyen's death. He said the CSIRO should have been prosecuted over the incident but could not be as the government agency came under the "shield of the Crown".

Outside court, CSIRO chief executive Geoff Garrett said Mr Nguyen's death was deeply regrettable.

"We have learned several important lessons from this tragedy so that a similar event shouldn't ever happen again," Dr Garrett said.

"At the time we believed our occupational health and safety systems were appropriate and well managed, but this incident highlighted issues that needed to be addressed … In the five years since we have taken that very much to heart."

He said the CSIRO, which has reached a "private agreement" with Mr Nguyen's family, had implemented a range of recommendations following his death.

Ms Jamieson made further recommendations yesterday that the CSIRO introduce more surveillance cameras and additional distress buttons within the laboratory.

Beaconsfield Mine In The Clear - No Charges Laid

April 23, 2007 - 2:49PM Source:AAP

There were still lessons to be learned following the Beaconsfield mine collapse despite a decision not to lay charges over the disaster, union heavyweight Bill Shorten says.

Miner Larry Knight died in the rock fall on April 25, 2006, while fellow miners Brant Webb and Todd Russell were trapped underground in the northern Tasmanian mine for 14 nights.

In a statement, a spokesman for the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) said the office was not about to lay charges over the Beaconsfield gold mine rockfall last Anzac Day.

The office said it did not have enough information from an independent investigation into the incident to determine if there had been a breach of Workplace Health and Safety laws.

However, it said charges could be laid at a later date if more information came to light as a result of the state-commissioned investigation by lawyer Greg Melick.

But Mr Shorten, the Australian Workers' Union national secretary, and who remained at the mine throughout the two-week rescue drama, said there was a breakdown in communications at the mine before its collapse.

"We have not seen the evidence that the DPP has, and will certainly not second-guess its decision, which was based on the diligent investigation of Mr Greg Melick," Mr Shorten said in a statement.

"But it is important to point out, however, that the fact that charges have not been laid does not mean lessons do not need to be learned.

"The AWU believes that there was poor communication at the mine prior to the rock fall, and we know that mining methods have changed since Anzac Day last year.

"There is very rarely a 'smoking gun', which could lead directly to charges in occupational health and safety incidents, but that should not take away from the fact that there are issues that need to be carefully studied and remedied in this case."

The mine's new management was committed to safety, Mr Shorten said.

Charges Laid Over Gate Death

Friday 20 April 2007 Source: Sunshine Coast Daily

LEGAL proceedings began yesterday against three companies linked to the death of a Nambour Plaza cleaner in 2005. Kathryn Jones – a 45-year-old mother of three – died instantly when a 900kg gate she had just opened came off its rollers and fell on her early on the morning of December 10, 2005. After an inquest into her death in December last year, a Maroochydore coroner found that a small piece of metal and a set of guide rollers could have prevented her death. Workplace Health and Safety lodged a complaint and summons against three companies immediately after the findings were handed out.

It began prosecution of Macquarie Assets Services Limited, the owners of Nambour Plaza, Savills (Qld) Pty Ltd, the company in charge of centre management and KMB Investments, which trades as Imperial Protection Services, in the Nambour Industrial Magistrates Court yesterday. No pleas were entered at the mention appearance. The case was adjourned to the Maroochydore Magistrates Court in June. After hearing two days of witness and expert testimony, Magistrate Tom Killeen’s report found 13 different events contributed to the eastern gate falling on that fateful day. He found it could have been prevented if the design of the gate included a “suitable stop” on the overhead truss. He said the stop would have stopped the gate from travelling past its middle point and guide rollers on the top rail of the gate, and helped hold it in place. Mr Killeen also found a security officer, who forcefully closed the gate the night before the accident, failed to test that the gates were working safely, or place any warnings.

WorkSafe response on bullying report

Thursday 19 April 2007 Source: Worksafe Victoria

WorkSafe is pleased, but not surprised, that the Ombudsman has cleared the organisation of allegations of improper conduct in relation to its handling of bullying claims at the Police Association.

The Ombudsman’s report was tabled in Parliament yesterday. WorkSafe supports the report’s three recommendations.In essence, the Ombudsman's report concluded that while existing policies and procedures for handling the bullying allegations

were followed, they should be reviewed.WorkSafe is committed to completing the review recommended by the Ombudsman as soon as possible.WorkSafe is pleased that the recommendation to conduct a formal investigation was implemented

approximately six weeks ago (early March) under established policies and procedures and independent of the Ombudsman’s inquiry process.A person alleging bullying was interviewed and the investigation remains open pending the receipt of more

specific information which will help take the matter forward.

The other recommendation relating to WorkSafe in the report relates to file noting and minuting of meetings.During the Ombudsman’s inquiry WorkSafe highlighted the fraught and complex nature of dealing with bullying allegations given the stark

differences in the nature of evidence usually available compared with safety failures where an injury is more apparent. There is a heavy reliance in bullying cases on alleged victims providing evidence that can be tested if a charge is to be

sustained.WorkSafe defines workplace bullying as repeated, unreasonable behaviour directed to an employee or group of employees that creates a risk to health and safety.Because of the serious long-term health effects of bullying and its effects on

co-workers and the overall business, a ‘prevention is better than cure’ approach is essential.A detailed practical guide ‘Prevention of bullying & violence at work’ is available online at www.worksafe.vic.gov.au or in hard copy.

More than 100,000 copies have been distributed since it was released on 2003.WorkSafe prosecuted Australia’s first two cases of workplace bullying in 2004.More information on bullying and occupational violence can be found

here.http://www.workcover.vic.gov.au/wps/wcm/connect/WorkSafe/Home/Safety+and+Prevention/Health+And+Safety+Topics/Bullying+and+Occupational+Violence/?&a=Bullying%20and%20Occupational%20Violence&p=Popular

Safety Rules Stretched To Save Miners

April 16, 2007 01:37am Source: AAP

KEY members of the rescue team that worked to free the men trapped when the Beaconsfield mine collapsed have revealed the emotion that drove their efforts and their unusual methods used to bend the rules to save their mates.

In tonight's Australian Story program, some members of the rescue team, including the men who first discovered Todd Russell and Brant Webb were alive, speak publicly for the first time about the dramas that unfolded at Beaconsfield, near Launceston in Tasmania.

The mine manager Mathew Gill, also speaks about the emotional toll the rescue took on him.

One member, rescue coordinator Patrick Ball, said one of the main difficulties they were presented with was complying with safety laws while doing all they could to free the two men after a rock fall in the mine on April 25 last year.

Mr Ball admits that during the two-week rescue he would often “tell people not to do things and hoping like hell they ignored me”.

“There was a certain amount of information that we needed which could only be got by people going in and doing, well, dangerous things,” Mr Ball told the ABC program.

“We had to find a way of getting information across to the mines inspector without the person that had gone in there admitting they'd broken the law by risking their own lives.”

Mr Ball said they worked around it by using what became known as “Rex's Dreams”, named after the mine's safety officer Rex Johnson.

“We simply went up to the mines inspector and said “Fred, I had a dream last night that you won't believe, I dreamed that I went to the 925, I climbed up the rock fall, I went down a small hole',” Mr Ball said.

“There was no crime there, there's just a man just telling me about a dream.”

Mr Ball has also recalled the moment when they heard the two men's voices.

“I wish I could tell you my feelings,” he said.

“I can remember the size of them but I can't describe what the feelings were. It was just like a big freight train of adrenalin had just hit you smack in the back of the head.”

Mr Gill, who has now resigned as mine manager, said he is also surprised there has been no anger directed at him from Mr Russell and Mr Webb.

He feared they might have held him somehow responsible for the accident.

“Todd and Brant have been back to site quite a few times, they have come into my office and had a chat.

“I've never detected any animosity or anger and I guess that surprised me.

“I guessed there might be that natural human reaction.”

Work Sausage Sizzle Burns Employee

Saturday, April 14 1:33 p.m. AAP

A Melbourne radio station worker has been taken to hospital with burns after a can of cooking oil ignited during a promotional barbecue outside a shopping centre.

The Metropolitan Fire Brigade (MFB) said the accident happened about 11.45am (AEST) on Saturday outside the Braybrook shopping centre, in Ashley Street, Braybrook, in Melbourne's west.

The woman was cooking food on a barbecue on a trailer when a can of cooking oil placed beside the trailer heated up and ignited, a MFB spokesman said.

The woman, who suffered superficial burns, was treated by paramedics before being taken to the Western Hospital.

"The barbecue trailer was being used for a promotional sausage sizzle and was from radio station Gold 104.3 FM," the spokesman said.

WorkCover investigators have begun an investigation into the accident.

Fears Silo Could Blow Town Away

Friday, April 13, 2007 08:58pm AAP

ABOUT 1500 residents from the southern New South Wales town of Temora have been evacuated amid fears a silo could explode.

The New South Wales Fire Brigade was called to the town around 1.30pm (AEST) today after the temperature in one of the silos started to escalate.

The fire brigade established an 800m exclusion zone around the 200-tonne silo, after the canola inside it heated to about 90 degrees.

"There's 170 tonnes approximately of canola in the silo, which for some reason unknown to anyone at the scene, started to spontaneously heat," Superintendent Tom Cooper said.

"Someone rang triple-0 to report that it had reached a temperature of about 90 degrees."

The fire brigade set up ground monitors and pumped water through them to cool the silo, which is in a compound with 26 other silos.

The silo's vents have also been opened to reduce the risk of explosion.

About 1500 residents were evacuated and taken to Temora town hall as a precaution, Supt Cooper said.

"It's not uncommon for a silo to get hot," he said.

"There are fire crews in breathing apparatus there at the moment monitoring what is coming out of the silo to ascertain whether it is explosive and how safe it is."

A Hazmat vehicle is also at the scene and the Hazmat commander and scientific officer are being flown from Sydney to assess the situation.

In January, about 1500 residents of the southern NSW town of Cootamundra were evacuated from their homes for two days because of fears a massive grain silo could explode.

Forklift Accident Critically Injures Man

Friday, April 13, 2007 12:47 p.m. NSW Police

Police are investigating an overnight industrial accident in Broken Hill, in the NSW ’s far west, which has left a man critically injured.

About 3am today, a colleague located the 56-year-old man impaled by a forklift tyne and pinned against a heavy vehicle trailer.

Police from the Barrier Local Area Command, as well as ambulance officers, attended the scene.

The man was taken by ambulance to Broken Hill Base Hospital suffering extensive internal injuries. He is understood to be in a critical but stable condition.

Meanwhile, a crime scene has been established at the premises and will undergo examination by Broken Hill detectives and officers from the Forensic Services Group.

Inquiries are underway to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident.

WorkCover has been notified and will also be investigating the incident.

Northern Territory Worksafe Prosecute Over Welders Death

Thursday, April 12, 2007. 7:33pm ABC

Three companies have been charged with breaching their duty of care following the electrocution death of a worker on Darwin's Waterfront development.

Twenty-three-year-old welder Cameron Bradley died in February last year when he was working on a pontoon near East Arm Wharf.

The three Contractors have been summonsed to appear in the Darwin Magistrates Court on charges of breaching Section 29 of the Work Health Act.

They face a maximum penalty of $125,000 each.

NT Worksafe spokesman John Hassed says the detailed investigation meant it took a long time for charges to be laid.

"The charges predominantly are under section 29 of the Work Health Act, and allege a failure to provide a safe workplace and that the health and safety of a worker was adversely affected by the work being undertaken," he said.

Electrical Trades Union spokesman Alan Paton says unions will campaign for construction companies to submit site safety plans to NT Worksafe before they start any building work in the Territory.

Out Of Control Truck Hits 17 Cars

By Frances Stewart and Sam Riches

April 12, 2007 11:34pm The Advertiser

AN out-of-control truck ploughed into 17 cars on Main South Rd in Adelaide this afternoon.

Fourteen people were taken to Flinders Medical Centre.

All of the injured were reported to be in a satisfactory condition and police said none suffered serious injury.

The truck appeared to have lost its air brakes as it travelled north towards the city before veering into the two right-hand lanes of traffic on Main North Rd and clipping cars.

It then hit a traffic light and two street lights as it jack-knifed across an intersection and damaged seven caravans in a business on the corner.

A four-wheel-drive was badly damaged , showering its occupants with glass.

One girl was taken to hospital, while several of the others suffered minor cuts.

The driver of one of the most seriously damaged cars, a Mercedes, said "when I got out of the car it was just absolute devastation".

Witnesses said the truck driver got out of the passenger side and collapsed on the road. He was not seriously injured.

No Wrong Doing Over Cyanide Spill

12 April 2007 8:02 a.m. Source ABC

A Northern Territory WorkSafe investigation has cleared all companies involved in a cyanide spill on the Stuart Highway in February of any wrongdoing.

The highway was closed for nine days as authorities cleaned up cyanide pellets that were spilt when a road train rolled.

WorkSafe found the cyanide manufacturer Orica, the freight company Toll Resources and its subcontractor Isa Freight followed all the rules in their handling of the chemical.

WorkSafe spokesman John Hassed has told the ABC's Country Hour that the packaging of the cyanide and the licensing of truck were investigated.

"The driver was also licensed to drive a truck carrying dangerous goods," he said.

"Our investigation found that the companies and the individuals fully complied.

"In terms of any ongoing investigation into the cause of the accident, that's a matter for the police."

Charges Over Beconsfiled Known Soon

12 April 2007 8:16 a.m. Source: The Boarder Mail

A DECISION on whether the Beaconsfield gold mine operators will face charges after the Anzac Day rock fall last year is expected to be made within two weeks.

Under the Workplace Health and Safety Act, authorities only have 12 months to lay charges from the time inspectors notice a possible breach — the day of the accident on April 25.

Miner Larry Knight died in the rock fall, which trapped his workmates Brant Webb and Todd Russell underground at the northern Tasmanian mine for 14 nights.

Tasmania Director of Public Prosecutions Tim Ellis is working from the time of the accident, a spokeswoman from his office confirmed yesterday.

“We have got to make a decision within the next two weeks,” she said.

The State Government has commissioned lawyer Greg Mellick to submit an independent report into the tragedy, which has been pushed back to May because of complicated geo-technical information.

The spokeswoman for Mr Ellis said the DPP was still liaising with Mr Mellick.

F-111 Action Stalls Without Getting Off The Ground

April 11, 2007 10:54am Article from: AAP

FORMER RAAF maintenance workers have withdrawn a class action against the Federal Government in their battle for compensation over health problems resulting from work on the F-111.

An inquiry six years ago was told former RAAF members who used toxic chemicals to repair the fuel tanks of the strike-fighters suffered health complaints ranging from cancer to blackouts and breathing problems.

The Federal Government has already paid out more than $20 million but has rejected many claims for lump sum payments because of what it says is a lack of scientific evidence linking chemical exposure to health problems.

The maintenance program, known as deseal-reseal, was conducted at the RAAF base at Amberley in Queensland between 1975 and 2000.

Lawyers for the RAAF members withdrew the claim today in the Supreme Court in Brisbane  but said they  would lanuch another.

A media conference is being held this morning to explain the decision.

New F-111 Claim For Government

April 11, 2007 09:46am Source: AAP

FORMER RAAF maintenance workers will today file a class action against the Federal Government in their battle for compensation over health problems resulting from work on the F-111 fighter planes.

An inquiry six years ago heard former RAAF members who used toxic chemicals to repair the fuel tanks of the strike-fighters suffered health complaints ranging from cancer to blackouts and breathing problems.

The Federal Government has already paid out more than $20 million but has rejected many claims for lump sum payments because of what it says is a lack of scientific evidence linking chemical exposure to health problems.

The maintenance program, known as deseal-reseal, was conducted at the RAAF base at Amberley in Queensland between 1975 and 2000.

Today's claim follows a similar one lodged in the Supreme Court in December.

Wife Of Killed Miner Speaks Out

April 10, 2007 09:44pm Source: AAP

WorkCover Audits Rake In The Cash

An investigation has revealed that WorkCover Victoria is raking in $1 million a week by telling businesses their subcontractors are actually employees and demanding huge backdated compensation premiums.

News Limited says its investigation has revealed that WorkCover's hunt for subcontractors in breach of its rules has trebled its audit from 6,590 to 20,227 over the past four years.

And it's claimed that the move is forcing six companies a day into bankruptcy.

Subcontractors usually pay their own insurance and employers only pay WorkCover premiums for long-term staff.

But confusion over the definition has allowed WorkCover to squeeze employers for extra revenue, News Ltd said.

Mackay Mine Accident Claims One

10 April 2007 10:32 a.m. Source: The Mecury

THE horrifying death yesterday of a 33-year-old contractor from Andergrove has again put the accident-prone Moranbah North mine into the spotlight.

Police said the man was pinned between machinery while working underground in the morning and was later extricated but died from his shocking injuries. The call to police was made at about 10.40am.

His tragic death follows a series of roof collapses and a wall cave-in at Moranbah North late last year in which several miners narrowly escaped death and another incident in which a man was pinned between a coal-cutting machine and 24-tonne ram car.

The Anglo Coal-run mine was also close to being shut down in January when it was revealed an excessive 17 electrical cables had burned in three months, each of which could ignite a coal dust explosion.

Anglo Coal Australia acting head of external business Susan Johnston said the man was employed with Walter Mining Proprietary Ltd.

"For all those involved this is a devastating event," Ms Johnston said.

"Anglo Coal Australia extends its deepest sympathies to the family, friends and workmates of the deceased mineworker. Our focus now must be on understanding why this tragedy occurred."

A Mackay police spokesman was unable to reveal how long the Andergrove man was trapped before he died. His name was not released last night but his next of kin were notified of his death.

The Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) was called to the scene but last night would not provide details on the fatal accident.

Police, mine and union inspectors were on site yesterday and in conjunction with Anglo Coal and Walter Mining were undertaking preliminary investigations, Ms Johnston said. Counselling had also been offered to employees.

The fatality follows warnings last week from the Construction, Forestry, Mines and Energy Union (CFMEU) that a safety disaster was looming in the Bowen Basin because of long work hours.

In the three months from August 3, The Daily Mercury uncovered eight serious safety incidents, including four roof collapses, at Moranbah North.

In the worst case a 12.5 metre section of roof caved in behind seven miners while they were working 200 metres underground. Quick thinking by an experienced mine deputy enabled the workers to scramble to safety over a narrow opening. In an earlier incident a man was pinned under a 100kg section of collapsed wall for 15 minutes but escaped without injury.

After the fourth roof collapse in October, State Mines Minister Geoff Wilson convened the first of what he said would be a series of urgent safety meetings between the department, unions and Anglo Coal.

Moranbah North is located about 18km north of Moranbah and produces about 4.5 million tonnes of hard coking coal each year for steel-making.

Health and Safety Warning for Agriculturial Business

05 April 2007 Source: Worksafe Victoria

WorkSafe has completed the third prosecution of a major agribusiness company this year resulting in a conviction and $85,000 fine for GrainCorp Operations Limited.

The case follows those involving Tatura Milk Industries Limited which was fined $40,000 without conviction in February, after a worker was sprayed with a hot acid and caustic cleaning solution when a sight glass shattered as a pipe was being cleaned.

In January, Australian Cooperative Foods was convicted and fined $20,000 after a February 2006 incident at its Allansford plant, which left an employee with an injured arm caused by an unguarded cheese conveyor.

WorkSafe’s Executive Director John Merritt said the cases highlighted the need for large and small businesses to properly guard equipment and train employees in safe working procedures.

“These are fundamental requirements of health and safety law. More importantly it is a vital part of being part of the regional community.

“Every year WorkSafe deals with a great number of serious injuries and deaths as a result of cases like these. It is the expectation of the community that people should not be hurt at work.

“It is reasonable that employers are aware of the known and potential hazards in their workplace and ensure they are eliminated as far as is practicable.”

GrainCorp Operations pleaded guilty to two charges laid under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 at the Horsham Magistrates Court on Friday,

The court was told a man’s leg and hip were seriously injured and he suffered bruising all over his body when the augur fell and pinned him between the barrel of the machine and the wheel frame at GrainCorp’s Antwerp rail siding site near Dimboola in August 2005.

He was in hospital for 17 days, including two weeks in traction, and off work for seven weeks.

WorkSafe’s investigation found: 

• No adequate risk assessment was carried out on this type of auger;
• The company had no manuals or Safe Working Instructions for the auger. It failed to provide information, instructions or training to employees in relation to the safe use of the auger;
• The injured man had not operated that type of “cotton reel” auger before the incident.  Nor had his workmate; 
• GrainCorp Operations could not state when the cotton reel auger was last inspected and would only have been aware of its general condition through staff observation. There were no records of any maintenance of the cotton reel auger; 
• Two people escaped injury when a similaraugur collapsed at a GrainCorp site at Carpolac several months before the incident at Antwerp.

The charges: (GrainCorp)

Section 21(1) & (2)(a) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004

21.Duties of employers to employees

(1) An employer must, so far as is reasonably practicable, provide and maintain for employees of the employer a working environment that is safe and without risks to health.

(2) Without limiting sub-section (1), an employer contravenes that sub-section if the employer fails to…

(a) provide or maintain plant or systems of work that are, so far as is reasonably practicable, safe and without risks to health;

Section 21(1), & (2)(e) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004

 As above and…

(e) provide such information, instruction, training or supervision to employees of the employer as is necessary to enable those persons to perform their work in a way that is safe and without risks to health.

Company To Stand Trial Over Roller Death

05 April 2007 Source: WorkSafe

Paper Australia Pty Ltd has been committed to stand trial in the County Court on a workplace health and safety charge.

A man died on 25 May 2005 when he was struck by a falling five-tonne roller on a paper-making machine at the Maryvale Paper Mill in Gippsland.

The roller was being lifted, but a cable snapped  causing it to fall and hit the man inflicting fatal injuries.

 Latrobe Valley Magistrate, John Dugdale, was told maintenance was underway at the time of the incident.

The case has been listed for a case conference in the County Court on 20 August.

The charge:

Sections 21(1)&21(2)(a) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 1985

s21. Duties of employers

(1) An employer shall provide and maintain so far as is practicable for employees a working environment that is safe and without risks to health.

(2) Without in any way limiting the generality of sub-section (1), an employer contravenes that sub-section if the employer fails—

(a) to provide and maintain plant and systems of work that are so far as is practicable safe and without risks to health;

Fatigue An Issue For WA Truckies

5-April-07

A roadblock exercise surveying drivers of commercial vehicles held last month saw three out of 221 drivers issued with prohibition notices for not taking a mandatory seven-hour rest period, according to Employment Protection Minister Michelle Roberts.

The full text of an announcement from the Minister's office is pasted below

A WorkSafe roadblock exercise held last month has highlighted safety concerns about a lack of rest breaks.

Employment Protection Minister Michelle Roberts said the operation found transport companies generally complied with the laws for commercial vehicles, but some inadequacies were exposed.

"It is pleasing to see many transport companies comply with the major aspects of Western Australia's fatigue regulations, but we need to keep in mind that fatigue is still a significant occupational safety and health issue in the commercial transport industry," Mrs Roberts said.

"WorkSafe inspectors found continuing problems with mandatory rest breaks and notices were issued when breaches were discovered.

"We have seen a steady increase in the understanding of fatigue laws over the past couple of years and it seems that the industry has come to grips with the laws that ensure commercial vehicle drivers are given sufficient rest."

The joint exercise near Merredin in the State's Wheatbelt was conducted by WorkSafe, the WA Police, State Emergency Service, Merredin Roadwise, Shire of Westonia and South Australia Transport Safety Compliance.

A total of 221 commercial vehicles were stopped at the roadblock, with seven improvement notices and three prohibition notices issued to drivers who had not taken the mandatory seven-hour rest break.

In addition, 81 transport companies will be contacted in relation to fatigue issues, medical checks for drivers, training of drivers and keeping accurate records.

"Although we are pleased with improvements in compliance, it is worth reminding the industry that adequate sleep and rest is essential to safe driving," the Minister said.

"Last month's roadblock also proved to be an excellent example of co-operation between agencies and across State boundaries, with valuable assistance provided to WorkSafe's inspectors by other agencies."

A code of practice for the management of fatigue has been in operation in WA since 1998 and was updated in 2003.

Concrete Panel Takes Off Workers Toes

Beaconsfield Mine To Open Next Week

Press Guard Leads to Fine

MEDIA group Rural Press has been fined $50,000 after a poorly guarded printing machine cost a Victorian man part of his finger.

The man's right hand was crushed and the tip of his thumb amputated after his hand caught in a machine while working at the company's Ballarat printing plant west of Melbourne in August, 2005.

Rural Press Printing Victoria was fined $50,000 in Ballarat Magistrates Court yesterday after pleading guilty to two charges under the Occupational Health and Safety Act.

The company also was ordered to pay $1620 in costs.

Worksafe Victoria told the court the man was working on a machine that inserts brochures into newspapers when he opened a door to clear loose paper, trapping his hand between a power-driven belt and pulley wheel.

The man's hand was crushed, lacertaing tendons and fracturing bones. Wires had to be inserted into his hand.

A WorkSafe investigation found there was no proper guarding on the machine's door, no safe working procedures for removing loose paper and risk assessments were not provided with the machine when it was installed several months earlier.

WorkSafe executive director John Merritt said it was concerning that companies with the capacity to ensure machines were guarded failed to do so.

"Unguarded machines and inadequate procedures were among the easiest workplace health and safety issues to fix," Mr Merritt said.

"Doing it after a death or injury is too late."

The company has since taken steps to make the machine safer, including fitting safety switches to all doors to the machine's danger areas.

Rural Press is the second major Victorian printing company prosecuted in less than a month.

In February, Hannanprint Victoria and Eastern Suburbs Newspapers Management were both convicted and fined $75,000 after a poorly guarded press amputated the tip of a man's finger in 2003.

Mr Merritt said machines should be provided with guards when purchased, fitted later in the case of older plants or if they cannot be fitted for some technical reason, the risk must be managed.

Tomago Aluminium fined over worker death

The Tomago Aluminium smelter, north of Newcastle on the New South Wales central coast, has been fined more than $250,000 over the death of a worker in an industrial accident three years ago.

Neil O'Connell, 50, was crushed in the accident, which happened while he was working as an operator in the paste plant on February 14, 2004.

He died almost two weeks later.

The company pleaded guilty to a breach of the Occupational Health and Safety Act by failing to ensure the health, safety and welfare of all of its employees.

The Industrial Relations Commission (IRC) was told Tomago Aluminium has taken several steps to improve safety after the accident, including the establishment of a task force to review operations in the paste plant.

The IRC yesterday fined the company $230,000.

Crane Accident leads to fine

Asbestos Related Disease - Underestimated

Wednesday, 4-Apr-2007 Source: News-Medical.net

Current predictions of the future incidence of asbestos-related disease have been substantially underestimated, according to new modelling presented in Melbourne by an epidemiologist from The Australian National University.

The analysis by Dr Mark Clements, from the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, and colleagues shows that the peak number of cases of mesothelioma, a deadly cancer caused by asbestos, will occur four years later and the future total incidence may be in excess of 35 per cent higher than existing models would have predicted. The pattern for mesothelioma reflects changes in asbestos exposure and therefore reflects predictions for all asbestos-related diseases, Dr Clements said.

These early results have important implications for asbestos-related disease liability schemes, Dr Clements said, although more detailed work is needed to properly integrate other factors related to the actuarial implications.

According to the research, an existing model developed by the auditing firm KPMG gave the peak of mesothelioma cases as occurring in 2010, with 3530 cases in New South Wales men. However, Dr Clements said their own epidemiological model showed that the peak could occur as late as 2017 and see 6430 cases of the deadly disease in NSW men.

"There is reasonable evidence that the peak of mesothelioma incidence is later than 2010. This has far reaching consequences for actuarial predictions, where the number of cases out to 2060 may be in excess of 35 per cent higher than the number predicted by KPMG's model," he said.

"It is unclear why the two models give different results. The KPMG modeling may have been influenced by a common belief that peak incidence would be in 2010; in contrast, our epidemiological model is able to predict the peak for incidence."

"Although these results have implications for liability, there are several steps between predicting mesothelioma incidence and calculating liability," he said. "Moreover, modelling would be required for other asbestos-related diseases.

"I can't speculate as to the revised level of liability. However based on our modelling of future mesothelioma incidence it's worrying that the liability may have been under-estimated," Dr Clements said.

Dr Clements will present this paper at the Accident Compensation Seminar, hosted by the Institute of Actuaries of Australia, in Melbourne today.

http://www.anu.edu.au