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Mining company fined after worker suffers serious injuries

Underground mining services company Northern Star Mining Services Pty Ltd was today fined $750,000 and ordered to pay $3211 in costs after a drill operator sustained spinal and leg injuries while working on heavy machinery.

The company pleaded guilty in the Perth Magistrates Court to two offences under the Work Health and Safety Act 2020 (WA) for causing serious harm to a worker and exposing workers to the risk of death, injury or harm to health.

FQM Australia Nickel fined $35,000 after tank rupture endangers worker

FQM Australia Nickel Pty Ltd was today fined $35,000 in the Esperance Magistrates Court after a ruptured tank spilled more than 10,000 litres of hot acidic slurry at the company’s Ravensthorpe nickel operations.

In May 2017, a field technician working on top of the processing tank had to jump across a three-metre drop to avoid the slurry that had burst through the tank’s fibreglass roof.

The spray from the mixture contacted his clothing and the skin on his lower back and face.

Company fined after telehandler and load fall

Mining operator fined after telehandler and load fall

FQM Australia Nickel Pty Ltd was today fined $19,000 in the Kalgoorlie Magistrates Court following an incident where a telehandler rolled over endangering two workers at the Ravensthorpe Nickel Mine on 11 January 2017.

The mining operator pleaded guilty after being charged with failing to provide a safe working environment under the Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994 (WA).

Contractor fined over Perth explosives cache

An experienced explosives expert Bruce William Fagan and his business, Explotise Pty Ltd, were today fined a total of $175,000 in the Armadale Magistrates Court for 12 dangerous goods offences, including unlicensed storage and failing to minimise the risks from ammunition, explosives and other dangerous goods.

In handing down the penalty, the court said there was a very real possibility of an explosion and that Mr Fagan had shown a wanton disregard for the safety of his neighbours and local community.

The dangers of working in high-heat environments

The Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS) reminds workers to guard against the effects of extreme temperatures in work environments following a forecast of above-average temperatures this summer.

DMIRS Director Mines Safety Andrew Chaplyn said the extremes of Western Australia's climate means heat stress is a significant risk that needs to be managed across mining and exploration operations.

Mines safety message drives across WA

  • The 15th annual Mines Safety Roadshow kicks off in Kalgoorlie today
  • Roadshow will visit 11 locations across WA during October and November

Mines and Petroleum Minister Bill Johnston has welcomed the annual Mines Safety Roadshow and its focus on promoting on-site risk awareness.

Hosted by the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety, the month-long series of roadshows starts in Kalgoorlie, before travelling across nine other Western Australian cities and towns.

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