02:18 pm, Tuesday 24 August, 2010

A bus company has pleaded guilty in the Darwin Magistrates Court today to violating Regulation 39 of the Work Health Regulations following a fatal accident in 2007.

The firm was fined $7,500 for its safety breach.

A 58-year-old driver was found by a workmate at the Alice Springs bus depot on 24 December 2007 with his head and neck trapped in a bus door. He died from the injuries he sustained.

The bus doors, which was operated by air-compressed pneumatic cylinders, were known to jam if compressed air was left in the cylinders overnight. Drivers were thus told to release air each day using the emergency release switch located in the stairwell of the bus.

Some drivers reported the door closed forcefully if release switch was turned too far, rather than releasing the air. Some drivers experienced being entrapped by the doors, although they were able to free themselves.

According to Work Health Authority’s Laurene Hull, the incident could have been avoided if the company had communicated and consulted with its workers about this particular hazard.

“Ideally, an employer would identify a hazard and take steps to eliminate the hazard from the workplace,” she said.

“If eliminating the hazard is not practical, then employers should seek to isolate or control the hazard to minimise the health and safety risk to their workers.

“This tragic incident highlights the importance of communication between employers and workers regarding workplace health and safety.”

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01:56 pm, Tuesday 24 August, 2010

Queensland Workplace Health and Safety is investigating a fatal accident at a car wrecking yard in north Queensland yesterday afternoon.

A 45-year-old man was killed after a car body fell on him at Bluewater near Townsville.

He was rushed to Townsville Hospital around 2:30pm but he was declared dead before reaching the hospital.

A police spokeswoman said the workplace fatality had been ruled an accident. Workplace Health and Safety is conducting investigation to determine if any safety procedure had been breached.

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02:37 pm, Monday 23 August, 2010

A worker is in critical condition after an alleged skylarking incident with a forklift at a plastic pipe manufacturing plant near Wagga Wagga on Wednesday.

The 30-year-old worker remains confined in a Sydney hospital after sustaining critical head injuries at the Bomen plant.

Early reports indicate the workers began playing around with a forklift by attaching a makeshift plastic sled to it.

The licensed operator of the forklift was allegedly towing his workmates on the sled when it became displaced after the forklift turned a corner.

One worker suffered head injuries after being thrown from the sled.

John Watson , General manager of WorkCover’s Occupational Health and Safety Division, said the incident was avoidable.

“If not used properly, forklifts put people at risk of serious injury or death because they can easily become out of control, tip over, turn too fast or lose loads,” Mr Wastson said.

He warned forklifts are not designed for carrying passengers.

“Forklifts are a complex piece of machinery that can be extremely dangerous when not used for their intended purpose,” he said.

WorkCover has started a comprehensive investigation into the incident.

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02:11 pm, Monday 23 August, 2010

A WorkCover investigation is continuing into a Toormina factory fatality last week.

According to WorkCover, a 60-year-old man fell from a platform that had been placed on a forklift at a factory south of Coffs Harbour.

The man suffered critical head injuries and later died in hospital because of the four-metre fall.

John Watson of WorkCover said falls from heights can be prevented.

“This is a tragic reminder of the risks of working at heights and the need for workers and really anybody working around their home to ensure that they have correct equipment to prevent falls from height whilst they’re carrying out work,” Mr Watson said.

“The tragedy of workplace fatalities is that people leave home in the morning and they never return.

“The reality of that is not just an impact on the work mates who witnessed the event and who may well have worked alongside this person for many years, but also of course the family.”

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01:58 pm, Monday 23 August, 2010

A toppled crane on near the intersection of Lutwyche Road and Norman Street in Brisbane’s inner-north has brought traffic to a crawl.

The crane at the Northern Busway construction site was moving a steel pile cage around 9am when it became unstable and collapsed on its side.

The steel caging and the crane toppled over a roadside concrete barrier and crushed a wire fence.

The cage and scattered debris has blocked the two left-hand lanes of Lutwyche Road south of Norman Street, causing traffic to stretch for three kilometres.

Workplace Health and Safety will investigate the construction accident, although no one was hurt.

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01:46 pm, Friday 20 August, 2010

A fishing company and a boat skipper have been convicted following the death of a deckhand in the Great Australian Bight in 2005.

The Industrial Court was told the worker had been killed in the direst circumstances while on a shark boat.

The 36-year-old was crushed to death in a revolving net after becoming entangled in it.

The penalty of the company and the deckhand will be handed down in September.

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12:30 pm, Friday 20 August, 2010

A bus company has won its appeal in the Industrial Court, absolving it of liability over an employee’s death in Adelaide’s north.

A bus driver was killed in 2005 at Elizabeth Shopping Centre. He got out of the bus with the engine running and the handbrake off when the vehicle ran over him.

The company was convicted for failing to maintain a safe workplace.

It lodged an appeal questioning the guilty verdict, alleging a hand brake alert system was not available until after the accident.

The Industrial Court ruled in favor of the company and ordered the conviction be quashed.

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12:15 pm, Friday 20 August, 2010

The Perth Magistrates Court has fined a vehicle dealership on Tuesday after a car driven by an apprentice hit a car detailer.

The Osborne Park company was fined $30,000 and ordered to pay $1750.70 in costs for failing to provide a working environment in which its employees were not exposed to hazards.

The incident happened at the dealership in Scarborough Beach Road in 20 September 2007. The car dealer was cleaning a Mitsubishi 380 when he was struck by a Mitsubishi Pajero, pinning him between the two vehicles.

He suffered multiple pelvic leg fractures as a result.

The court was told the 17-year-old apprentice who was driving the Mitsubishi Pajero did not hold a driving licence.

Magistrate Tavener heard it was company practice to allow apprentices with only their learner’s permit to drive by themselves and unsupervised around the workplace.

WorkSafe WA alleged the company did not provide adequate assessment to the apprentice on the safe operation and movement of vehicles at the workplace.

It was also said the dealership had known two prior car accidents at the workplace involving the apprentice. No further assessment, instruction or supervision was made.

WorkSafe’s Nina Lyhne said the company did not take its obligation to provide a safe working environment seriously.

“As a result, the car detailer has received multiple injuries,” Ms Lyhne said.

“This is even more serious given that the apprentice had a history of involvement in accidents at the site, yet the company had made no attempt to intervene.

“All employers need to be aware of the need for adequate supervision and training.”

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09:53 am, Tuesday 17 August, 2010

WorkCover NSW has released a safety alert clarifying the requirements on 10-year-old cranes as specified in AS2550.1-2002 Cranes, hoists and winches – Safe use – General requirements.

According to the safety watchdog, cranes are required to undergo a major inspection at the nominal 10-year interval.

It says employers are required to ensure that maintenance and repair of plant are undertaken, having regard to the instructions of the designer and manufacturer.

All cranes must have a major inspection at the end of their design life, nominally 10 years for the mechanical components, unless the designer, or a specific part of AS2550, advises otherwise – it can be more or less than 10 years, depending on whether the history of the crane is known or unknown.

From 23 August 2010, mobile cranes with SP2 configuration (over-mass on one or more axle group) and a GVM more than 12 tonne will require an annual inspection to a safety standard as part of their registration renewal.

Please visit rta.nsw.gov.au and search for ‘ACIS’ for more details and the Crane Industry Council Australia (CICA) web site cica.com.au for information on the criteria for a 10-year major service.

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09:29 am, Tuesday 17 August, 2010

The Civil Contractors Federation (CCF) has released a guideline for the Victorian civil construction sector.

The CCF has published the document to provide pointers to the industry on practices that minimise the construction activity’s environmental impacts.

The 75-page document discusses various environmental issues, including drainage control, water quality monitoring, dust control, waste management, storage of fuels and chemicals, road cleaning, fire management, emergency procedures and many more.

To download a copy of the environmental guideline, please click here.

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