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Weekly incident summary

24 May 2019 | ISR19-19 | Go to website
To report an incident call 1300 814 609 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Week ending 17 May 2019
High level summary of emerging trends and our recommendations to operators.

Reportable incidents: 29
Summarised incidents: 3

This incident summary provides information on reportable incidents and safety advice for the NSW mining industry.

Dangerous incident | IncNot 0034587

Summary: A fire occurred on an integrated tool carrier in an underground metalliferous mine. The fire occurred within the turbocharger and was extinguished by the onboard fire suppression system. The cause of the fire has been attributed to a turbocharger oil line failure and is being investigated by the original equipment manufacturer (OEM).

Recommendations to industry: The failure of oil and fuel lines near exhausts and turbo chargers are well known causes of fire. Maintenance systems must account for this when setting inspection frequencies.

Dangerous incident | IncNot 0034595

Summary: Early signs of coal oxidation occurred in an underground coal mine. A longwall superintendent identified a tarry/coal burning smell at the tailgate of a longwall face. Further investigation and bag samples confirmed that the oxidation was not occurring within the goaf. The mine identified the oxidation to be around a bulkhead at the fault-disturbed zone. The mine established an incident management team to manage the situation. The mine pressure grouted the fractured strata with strata binder to reduce air paths, which stopped the oxidation process.
Recommendations to industry: Spontaneous combustion must be addressed as part of the mine’s principal hazard management plan. MDG 1006 Spontaneous Combustion Management must be reviewed to confirm appropriate controls are in place for longwall operation. Setting appropriate TARPs is critical in the early intervention of a spontaneous combustion event and should be set in respect of the testing results.

Dangerous incident | IncNot 0034623

Summary: A fuel truck rolled away while a worker was on top of the tank in a quarry. The worker had climbed onboard to dip the tank when the truck rolled away. The worker jumped from the truck before it came to rest against a barrier. The truck rolled about 150 metres. The driver was not injured.
 
Recommendations to industry: Mine operators should ensure machines are stable, the parking brake is applied and wheels are chocked before climbing on board to complete inspections or maintenance tasks.

Other publications of interest

The 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.

International (other non-fatal)

Publication: 3M
Fall protection - product notice
3M Fall Protection has learned of the possibility of a manufacturing defect in a dorsal D-ring utilised in ExoFit NEX™ harnesses manufactured between January 2016 and December 2018.
Details

Publication: MinEx NZ
Safety Alert - Fly rock incident
During a blast, fly rock was ejected about 300 metres beyond the exclusion zone and into an area where people were thought to be in the safe zone.
Details

Publication: MSHA
NMN Serious accident alert facility - cement
On 7 May, 2019, a miner suffered burns to his body when superheated gases carrying hot, fine, alkaline particles were forcefully expelled through an open process vessel door. 
The worker was on a platform 5 to 6 feet above other miners who were setting off a Cardox charge to free a blockage in the vessel. He opened the door around the same time they set off the charge.
Details

Publication: MinEx NZ
Water cart rollover
The operator of an articulated water cart reversed down a ramp with the spray bars turned on. The rear right tyre rode up a rock face about 600 millimetres high and the truck body, with half a tank of water, tipped onto its right-hand side. 
The operator tried to drive forward while the body was tipping, which caused the cab of the truck to tip to the opposite side. The operator was wearing a seatbelt and was not injured.
Details
National (fatal)
Publication: WorkSafe VIC
Worker fatally injured after fall off steel stillage
A male worker has died after falling from a steel stillage that had been raised on the tines of a forklift. While oxy-cutting steel beams, the stillage became unstable and fell from the raised tines of the forklift, landing on the concrete surface about 4.5 metres below.
Details
National (other, non-fatal)
Publication: DMIRS WA
MSB no 164 Wheels detaching from graders
The government of Western Australia has received reports of potentially serious incidents involving graders when either a front steering wheel or a driving wheel experienced catastrophic failure of its stub axle, resulting in the wheel suddenly detaching during operation.
Details
 
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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 Annual Performance Measures Reports.
 
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