Company fined $65,000 following an incident that seriously injured a worker in 2012.
| Date: | Wednesday, 28 December 2016 |
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DKMSPP Pty Ltd, formerly operating as TME, was fined $65,000 in Perth Magistrates Court last week (23 December) following an incident that seriously injured a worker at Newmont's Boddington Gold Mine in 2012.
The company had been contracted to reline the ball mills used to process ore at the Boddington mine.
On 11 July 2012, Francois Mostert was working with the day shift crew to reline Ball Mill 3.
He was preparing to remove two unsecured liner plates from inside the ball mill when the top liner plate dislodged and fell onto him.
Mr Mostert was trapped underneath the liner plate, which weighed about 1450kg, and had to be rescued.
He was taken by ambulance to Boddington Hospital, before he was stabilised and flown to Royal Perth Hospital for further treatment.
Mr Mostert sustained extensive injuries, including compound leg fractures, fractured vertebra and crush injuries to his chest. He was discharged from hospital on 8 October 2012, almost three months after the incident.
Department of Mines and Petroleum Mines Safety Director and State Mining Engineer Andrew Chaplyn said the incident could have been fatal.
"While a number of safe work procedures had been developed for work tasks related to relining the mill, none of them addressed the removal of stuck liner plates," Mr Chaplyn said.
“The unsecured liners had been identified as a hazard, but they were not included in any job safety analysis and there were no barriers keeping the work crew out of the line of fire if one of the unsecured liners fell.”
Mr Chaplyn said the department's investigation identified inadequate training and procedures as contributing to the incident.
"This incident has resulted in life-changing consequences, not just for Mr Mostert, but also for his family, friends and co-workers," Mr Chaplyn said.
"It serves as a reminder of why safety must always be our highest priority."
