Vic power station facing charges over worker death

A Victorian power station is facing charges following the death of a worker in 2018.

The worker died in hospital after being severely burned by an arc flash that occurred while he was working on a 6.6kV circuit breaker.

It is alleged that the incident happened when a cable he was connecting made contact with live components of the circuit breaker.

WorkSafe has charged the power station with three breaches of the OHS Act following the incident.

The decision follows a review by the Office of Public Prosecutions.

WorkSafe Victoria said on Wednesday, “All WorkSafe decisions to prosecute are made in accordance with its General Prosecution Guidelines, which require it to consider whether there is sufficient evidence to support a reasonable prospect of conviction and whether bringing a prosecution is in the public interest.”

The matter is listed for a filing hearing at the Latrobe Valley Magistrates' Court on 13 January 2022.

View the original article on the WorkSafe VIC website.