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Weekly incident summary

18 April 2019 | ISR19-14| Go to website
To report an incident call 1300 814 609 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Week ending 12 April 2019
High level summary of emerging trends and our recommendations to operators.

Reportable incidents: 30
Summarised incidents: 3

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

Dangerous incident | IncNot 0034360

Summary: A fire occurred on a dozer in an open cut coal mine. The dozer was capping blasted ground when the operator noticed a fire. The operator decided to relocate the dozer to a lower level to get better access to a water cart when the dozer became bogged on the slope of the blast heap. The dozer’s fire suppression system was manually operated, which appeared to extinguish the fire. A short time later, the fire reignited. Several workers attempted to put out the fire with hand-held extinguishers. A water cart arrived and extinguished the fire. The operator slipped and suffered a hand injury.
Recommendations to industry: Within the site’s emergency procedures, mine operators should consider access to work areas for emergency vehicles when designing work areas. Operators should follow emergency procedures without causing further risk to themselves and others from environmental hazards such as poor lighting, unstable ground conditions and toxic fumes.

Dangerous incident | IncNot 0034365

Summary: A light vehicle hit a drill steel protruding from a jumbo drilling rig that was parked in the main decline. The drill steel caught on the passenger side wing mirror and went through the rear window, narrowly missing the passenger. As the vehicle travelled forward, the drill steel started to bend before springing out of the cab and landing 13 metres down the decline. No workers were injured.
Recommendations to industry: Mine operators should ensure that machine loads and items that are stored for transport do not protrude and pose any risk to other passing vehicles. A S195 notice was issued to the mine preventing drill steels being transported on jumbo’s while the machines are tramming between production areas.

Dangerous incident | IncNot 0034334

Summary: A haul truck rolled onto its side at an open cut coal mine. The truck had travelled over the crest and was descending a ramp. The operator tried unsuccessfully to slow the truck. The truck contacted a windrow and rolled onto its side. There were no other vehicles in the vicinity at the time. The operator was not injured. The photographs of the incident site (below) graphically illustrate the potential severity of this incident as the out of control truck was approaching an intersection and a vertical drop at the time.

Recommendations to industry: Mine operators should review whether ramp and cresting speed limits are appropriate for the retarder and braking systems fitted to haul trucks. Mine operators should review the training provided to operators regarding the safe application of retarders and service brakes on haul trucks.
Mine operators should routinely download and review operating data from haul truck logging systems to verify trucks are being operated in a safe manner. This incident is the subject of further investigation by the NSW Resources Regulator.

Other publications of note

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 (fatal)
Publication: MSHA
Metal/non-metal mine fatality
On 11 November 2018, a 45-year-old underground technician, with four years’ experience, was killed when the load haul dump machine he had been operating ran over him.
Details
Publication: MSHA
U/G Metal - miner buried by cemented rock fill
Jason M. Holman, a 42-year-old powderman with eight years of experience, was fatally injured on 25 October, 2018, when cemented rock fill (CRF) used to backfill previously mined areas fell from the back/roof and buried him while he was loading blast holes. Mr Holman’s body was recovered from the fallen material on 26 October, 2018.
Details
Publication: MSHA
Surface coal - Worker crushed while removing a push beam
On 7 March, 2019, a 38-year-old miner with 10 years of mining experience suffered fatal injuries while he was working on the pad of a highwall mining machine (HWM). The miner was in a pinch point between a post and a section of the HWM (i.e. push beam) that was being removed as part of the normal mining cycle.
Details
Publication: MSHA
Surface rock - Worker crushed by heavy vehicle (final report)
On 11 December, 2018, a 38-year-old miner was fatally injured at a surface coal mine. The miner was operating a front-end loader to move shot rock near the toe of a highwall. A large portion of the highwall collapsed onto the front-end loader, crushing the operator cab and fatally injuring the miner.
Details
Publication: MSHA
U/G coal - Worker suffersfatal high-pressure injury (final report)
On 29 November, 2018, a mechanic with 29 years of mining experience was severely injured when hydraulic pressure propelled a piece of metal out of a hydraulic fitting that he was examining, and the metal penetrated his head.  The miner died on 30 December, 2018 because of his injuries.
Details
NATIONAL (other, non-fatal)
Publication:DMIRS WA
Mentally healthy workplaces for fly-in fly-out (FIFO) workers in the resources and construction sectors – code of practice
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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