Weekly incident summary - week ending 5 August 2022
26 reportable incidents, 2 summarised below
|
|
Dangerous incident | IncNot0042740
Underground metals mine
|
|
Summary: An inrush of water hit 2 workers who were at the base of a feed bin at an underground loading station. They both suffered bruises and abrasions. The workers were around scaffolding at the base of the bin during a shutdown maintenance period.
The bin was empty of ore material at the time. Boards supported by acrow props were placed to prevent small pieces of ore from the bin falling onto the workers. The boards resulted in a volume of water accumulating in the bin and when the water was released, it hit the workers with force and pushed them onto the scaffolding.
|
|
Comments to industry: During shutdowns, risk assessments must consider water and material accumulation and material flow as a hazard when working on, in and around bins, chutes and conveyors. When developing the control measures to manage the risks of inundation or inrush of any substance, mine operators must consider the:
- failure or blocking of the flow channels
- potential for the accumulation of water or materials that could liquefy or flow into other workings or locations
- potential for control systems to introduce unexpected sources of material, such as valves opening automatically.
Refer to CHPP Sump water inrush a video provided by a NSW mine to share learnings.
|
|
High potential incident | IncNot0042679
Underground coal mine
Airborne dust and other contaminants
|
|
|
Summary: Several workers exceeded the occupational exposure limit for respirable quartz while working on a longwall cutting coal. The exceedances were low level. The shearer was cutting varying amounts of stone across the face. A stone band and fault were also present on the face. During the shift, all workers were observed wearing respiratory protection and sprays were operational.
|
|
|
Comments to industry: When cutting increased amounts of stone on a longwall, additional controls must be put in place to protect workers from exposure to dust. The position of workers away from dust sources should be a high priority. Task rotation between workers should also be considered. Controls such as sprays must be regularly maintained, and additional sprays should be considered. The frequency of maintenance of risk control measures should be increased during periods when additional dust may be generated.
|
|
Other publications of interest
These incidents are included for your review. The NSW Resources Regulator does not endorse the findings or recommendations of these incidents. It is your legal duty to exercise due diligence to ensure the business complies with its work health and safety obligations.
National (other, non-fatal)
SafeWork Australia
Preventing psychological harm is an essential part of creating a healthy and safe workplace. The model work health and safety (WHS) laws now include regulations on psychosocial hazards. A new model Code of practice on managing psychosocial hazards at work explains the laws and how to comply with them, including practical steps to manage workplace risks to psychological health. Safe Work Australia Chief Executive Officer Michelle Baxter said ‘under work health and safety laws, PCBUs have a positive duty to do everything they reasonably can to prevent exposure to psychosocial hazards and risks’.
Details |
|
|
You can find all our guidance and incident related publications (that is, safety alerts, safety bulletins, incident information releases, weekly incident summaries and investigation reports) on our website: resourcesregulator.nsw.gov.au
|
|
*While the majority of incidents are reported and recorded within a week of the event, some are notified outside this time period. The incidents in this report therefore have not necessarily occurred in a one week period. All newly recorded incidents, whatever the incident date, are reviewed by the Chief Inspector and senior staff each week and summarised in this report. For more comprehensive statistical data refer to our Safety Performance Measures Reports and our Business Activity Reports.
|
|
|
|
