07:29 am, Monday 16 July, 2007

AAP

A CRANE which threatened to topple from the top of the Commonwealth Government Centre in Hobart, causing the evacuation of a nearby motel, has now been safely removed.

A crew was using a crane at ground level to remove another crane from the top of the Commonwealth Government offices when things went wrong at about 2.30pm (AEST) yesterday, Tasmania Police said.

The roof-based crane had been used to add two floors to the top of the building.

The crew was using the ground crane to bring the cabin and a part of the boom of the roof crane down when its arm buckled and twisted.

About 30 people were evacuated from the motor inn, and Macquarie Street, one of Hobart’s busiest streets, was closed as the roof crane threatened to fall from the damaged arm.

Motel guests were sent to alternative accommodation for the night.

“Late yesterday evening, a 160 tonne crane arrived from Burnie, in the state’s north, and was able to stabilise the collapsed arm of the second crane in an operation which was completed just before 2am (AEST) today,” Tasmania Police spokesman Phil Pyke said.

“The head (cabin and boom) of the initial crane was finally lifted from the top of the Commonwealth Government Centre shortly after,” he said.

“Roadblocks on nearby streets have been removed and morning peak hour traffic is expected to flow smoothly.

“However, Harrington Street, between Macquarie and Collins Streets, may remain closed as the dismantling of the fixed crane from the Commonwealth Government Centre continues into the morning.”

The accident was the second involving a crane in Hobart in a month.

On June 20, a crane driver escaped uninjured when his crane fell and hung for hours at the highest point on the Tasman Bridge, east of the CBD.

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07:55 am, Sunday 15 July, 2007

AAP

PEAK-hour traffic in central Hobart will likely be disrupted tomorrow as crews work to dismantle a crane that threatened to collapse on a high-rise motel today.

A crew was using a crane at ground level to remove a crane from the top of the Commonwealth government offices when trouble struck about 2.30pm (AEST) today, Tasmania Police spokesman Phil Pyke said.

The roof-based crane had been used to add two floors to the top of the building.

“They were bringing the crane head down, the cabin and a small part of the boom, when it became insecure and threatened to fall on the Macquarie Motor Inn,” Mr Pyke said.

“There was a twist in an arm of the crane that was doing the lifting.”

About 30 people were evacuated from the motor inn.

Macquarie Street, one of Hobart’s busiest streets, was closed as the roof crane threatened to fall from the damaged arm.

Motel guests have been sent to other accommodation for the night.

The dismantling crew returned the roof crane to the top of the office building and were waiting for a second crane to arrive from Burnie, in the state’s north-west, about midnight, Mr Pyke said.

While the situation was settled for now, there was still “an element of risk” that the roof crane could collapse, he said.

Macquarie Street, a one-way street, is the main eastbound thoroughfare through central Hobart.

The street is expected to remain blocked at Molle Street into the morning peak hour tomorrow, Mr Pyke said.

This was the second crane accident in Hobart in a month.

On June 20, a crane toppled and hung for hours over the side of the Tasman Bridge, east of the CBD.

The driver escaped unhurt from the accident, which occurred during routine maintenance.

Only the bridge’s guard rail stopped the rig from plummeting 30m to the Derwent River.

The bridge was closed until other cranes were brought in to right the toppled crane.

Grease Guns

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04:15 pm, Saturday 14 July, 2007

AAP

A MAN was crushed to death while attempting to hook up a semi-trailer earlier today near Monto, in south-east Queensland.

The 46-year-old man, from NSW, was found dead on Saleyard Road, south of Monto, about 10.30am.

He was found crushed under the rear wheels of a semi-trailer float.

A police spokeswoman said it was believed the man was attempting to hook a float onto the semi-trailer when the accident occurred.

Workplace, health and safety officers are investigating the incident.

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06:00 pm, Friday 13 July, 2007

Fairfax

A teenage apprentice builder is in hospital with multiple fractures after falling through a skylight in Ringwood, in Melbourne’s east.

The 15-year-old apprentice was working on a roof when he fell five metres.

WorkSafe acting Construction and Utilities spokesman Allan Beacom said that the incident had all of the elements of a disaster waiting to happen.

“The dangers of falling through skylights when working on roofs are well known, and we have worked extensively with the industry to highlight these dangers and the simple measures needed to prevent them,” Mr Beacom said.

Mr Beacom said construction employers and workers needed to take preventative steps when working at height. He said all work from a height of more than two metres required some form of fall prevention system.

“This can be as simple as the use of rigid covers over skylights or penetrations, barriers or temporary platforms,” Mr Beacom said.

Mr Beacom also said it was crucial that employers took into account the age of the worker and provided them with proper instruction, training and supervision.

“WorkSafe figures show that younger Victorian workers – aged 24 and under – have a higher rate of injuries requiring hospitalisation than their older and more experienced workmates,” Mr Beacom said.

He said at least 11 per cent of all claims reported by workers aged 24 or younger resulted in hospital admission for at least one day.

“Young workers need more supervision and should never be left to work alone until they can demonstrate the skills required for their job,” he said.

Mr Beacom said Worksafe Victoria was working with government departments, other statutory agencies and community groups on the need to develop guidelines regarding particular risks to young workers and how these risks can be controlled.

WorkSafe already operates a telephone advisory service on 1800 136 089.

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10:03 pm, Wednesday 11 July, 2007

Souce: AAP

FIRE crews are working to avoid a potential explosion of leaking oil and ammonium nitrate on board a cargo ship near Newcastle.

About 1.20am (AEST) this morning, a ship crane was loading 500 1.2 tonne bags of ammonium nitrate onto the vessel at Kooragang Island, just north of Newcastle.

Leaking oil from the hydraulic crane landed on a number of the sealed bags, raising the alarm and prompting fire crews to step in.

A no-go area has been established to minimise the chance of anything that may cause the dangerous combination to explode.

“We’d have a large explosion but what we have done is we’ve established a hot zone of 100 metres so no one goes inside the hot zone,” a NSW Fire Brigades spokesman told Macquarie Radio.

“Fire crews are keeping an eye out … making sure that there’s no ignition sources.”

A replacement crane is being sought and crews expect to begin unloading the bags around 8am.

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09:16 pm, Wednesday 11 July, 2007

Worksafe Victoria

A 35-year-old window cleaner has died in hospital after falling about 12 metres from a city office building on Sunday morning

WorkSafe believes the Kew man fell after an air vent gave way, causing him to fall into Bourke St near the intersection of Exhibition Street.

The incident follows another serious fall from height last Wednesday at the Watergardens Shopping Centre in Melbourne’s north.

In that incident, a 22-year-old man fell about five metres to the ground while sealing glass panels.

He remains in the Alfred Hospital.

WorkSafe’s Executive Director, John Merritt, said falls from height were among the single biggest causes of workplace deaths and serious injuries.

Four of the 17 deaths reported to WorkSafe this year have been the result of falls.

“Apart from fatalities, the chance of becoming a paraplegic or quadriplegic or suffering brain damage is high.

“What workers and their employers must understand is that the safe means of working at height are well established and that they have very clear interests in ensuring they are used.

“Poor planning, rushing to get work done, and using inadequate equipment can be disastrous and affect not only individuals, but families, workmates, employers and the broader community.”

Fatal falls in Victoria since January 1 2007

27 March: A Bendigo man died on after falling from a pergola;

6 May: A man fell from a ladder at Quambatook;

7 May: A ceiling plasterer fell from a trestle at a Northcote house under renovation;

25 June: Window cleaner falls12m in central Melbourne

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08:55 pm, Wednesday 11 July, 2007

Worksafe Victoria

A construction company has been convicted and fined $15,000 after the director’s son was seriously burned in a construction site explosion at Niddrie last year.

The injured man was only released from hospital two weeks ago and is still undergoing rehabilitation.

Magistrate Barry Docking said the 31-year-old’s injuries would be a constant, lifelong reminder to the director of what happened to his son and this significant factor was reflected in the sentence.

Stamboulis Constructions Pty Ltd pleaded guilty at the Sunshine Magistrates Court today to one charge under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004.

The court was told the explosion was caused by the arc welder electrod

The drum had a red ‘flammable liquid’ label and other warnings. Users were also required to refer to the product’s material safety data sheet.

WorkSafe’s Construction and Utilities Program Director, Geoff Thomas, said the incident and the dreadful consequences for the injured man and his family could have been avoided if the company purchased appropriate trestles.

“Incidents with tragic and traumatic permanent consequences are not uncommon.

“Ensuring people have a safe working environment and the equipment to do the job safely is a fundamental requirement. It’s not just the law, it’s the right thing to do.”

“Everyone has a right to a safe workplace just as they‘re entitled to go home at the end of the day. In this case, the injured man has permanent injuries and the lives of everyone involved have been devastated.”

“Families bear the brunt of workplace injuries. They don’t have to, if everyone in the workplace protects themselves and their colleagues.”

The charge:

s21 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 subsection (1), an employer contravenes that subsection if the employer fails to do any of the following:

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

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06:15 pm, Wednesday 11 July, 2007

Source: AAP

A CONSTRUCTION worker has been seriously injured on a Perth building site, according to a construction union.

The West Australian branch of the Construction Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) said today a steel reinforcing rod pierced nearty 20cm up the worker’s leg.

Another rod scraped his face, narrowly missing an eye.

He was taken to a Perth hospital for treatment, but his condition was not known.

“The CFMEU has always emphasised that the construction industry can be a dangerous one and this is just another example, CFMEU WA assistant secretary, Joe McDonald, said.

“It has been and will continue to be my main priority to ensure that construction workers remain safe.”

Earlier today, Mr McDonald made a brief appearance in the Perth Magistrates court to face six trespassing charges for allegedly illegally entering Perth construction sites.

The union heavyweight also faces expulsion from the Labor Party after video footage showed him abusing a company representative who had told him to leave a building site.

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06:12 pm, Wednesday 11 July, 2007

Source: AAP

Griffith detectives and the Forensic Service Group are investigating the death of a local man in a freak farming accident at Tabbita on Monday night.

Noel Simpkin, 63, died after becoming caught in an auger while extracting livestock feed from a silo on his property.

Police and emergency services were called to the scene at around 9.30pm after receiving information a man had been caught in machinery.

Griffith LAC duty officer Acting Inspector Scott Glynn said on Tuesday the coroner would investigate the death.
“We’ve got to be in contact with the coroner today in relation to a post mortem,” he said.

A spokesman for WorkCover said it was investigating the incident but was unsure if it fell within their jurisdiction.

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03:35 pm, Wednesday 11 July, 2007

Source: AAP

A man has been admitted to hospital after being buried under a load of grain on a farm in central Queensland.

A 19-year-old man from Glenden, near Mackay, was standing near the rear of a tilt tray truck carrying grain when its load was dumped quicker than expected, police said.

He was buried under the grain for almost four minutes before he was dug out and taken to Mackay Base Hospital.

He remains in a stable condition.

Workplace Health and Safety officers are investigating the accident.

OHS News Recommendation – Safe Loading and Unloading of Trucks Safe Work Procedure

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