United Group Infrastructure Pty Ltd

Incident description:

On 22 September, 2008 a 37 year old male rigger was killed when he was struck in the head by a cable that suddenly released under tension.

The worker was one of two people decommissioning a high tension power cable from a tower in Miriwini, north of Innisfail. While being removed, the cable suddenly released and struck both workers, fatally severing the spinal cord of one and causing less serious injuries to the other.

The court acknowledged United Group Infrastructure Pty Ltd had an obligation under s.28 of the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995 to ensure the health and safety of workers.

The facts presented to the court revealed:

• the defendant failed to conduct work as a 'prescribed activity', namely 'demolition work'
• the defendant was let down by site workers in senior positions in their provision of direct supervision
• the load had been slung by an unqualified person in a manner that caused the sling to break and the tensioned load to rebound and strike other workers.

Court result:

The defendant pleaded guilty in the Cairns Industrial Magistrates Court on 19 May 2010 to breaching s.24(1) of the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995, having failed to meet its workplace health and safety obligations and was sentenced with no conviction recorded.

Industrial Magistrate Suzette Coates ordered the defendant pay a penalty of $65 000 as well as investigation, professional and court costs totalling $8851.93.

In reaching a decision the industrial magistrate acknowledged the defendant had failed to provide direct supervision for the work being performed at the time.

In deciding the penalty imposed Industrial Magistrate Coates took into account the defendant had not been prosecuted previously for any workplace health and safety breach, had co-operated with the investigation and entered an early plea of guilty.

Considerations for prevention:

(Commentary under this heading is not part of the Court's decision.)

When working in the construction industry where there is exposure to risks from being struck by the release of objects under tension, obligation holders should apply a risk management approach to ensure the selection of suitable control measures.

Risk management involves:

• identifying the hazards
• evaluating the consequences and likelihood of harm that may result from the hazard
• deciding on and implementing control measures to prevent or minimise the level of the risk from the hazard
• monitoring the effectiveness of the control measures to ensure they remain working correctly.

When deciding on and implementing control measures associated with the risk of being struck by the release of objects under tension, obligation holders should ensure adequate supervision of the work being undertaken, an exclusion zone for personnel and that the slinging techniques used comply with the relevant Australian Standards.

Visit the Workplace Health and Safety Queensland website for more information on:

• Health and safety information for riggers
• Managing risk
• Employer training options
• Training staff
• Risk Management Code of Practice 2007
• Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995.