May 26th 2021 |
Wednesday 26th May 2021
Safety News Roundup: Wednesday 26th May 2021
Today's safety news brings two serious workplace incidents from across Australia, highlighting the ongoing importance of robust safety controls on industrial and construction sites.
Worker Injured at Western Sydney Quarry When Heavy Equipment Falls on Him
A worker aged in his 40's was injured on an industrial site when heavy equipment crushed one of his legs.
The accident happened on Monday at the Boral Quarries in Emu Plains. Emergency crews rushed the man to hospital after it was reported his foot was trapped in rock crushing machinery.
Emergency response crews from NSW Ambulance, NSW Fire and Rescue and NSW Police helped winch the man from the machinery onto a stretcher. He remains in a stable condition but has a serious ankle injury.
You can read the original article on the Nine News website.
Record Prison Term for Shed Building Company Director Over Work-Related Death
In March last year, in Western Australia, two workers fell from the roof of a large machinery shed they were installing roof sheets on after a strong wind lifted one of the sheets.
One of the workers, a father of three, died after plummeting about nine metres from the apex of the roof. The second worker fell about seven metres from the roof's edge, near the gutter lane and suffered multiple fractures to his ribs, wrist, pelvis and hip. No safety control measures were in place at the time of the incident.
The company director pleaded guilty to seven charges in Esperance Magistrates Court and was sentenced to two years and two months behind bars. He will serve eight months immediately, with the remaining 18 months suspended for one year.
This sentence stands as the longest term of imprisonment ever imposed for a work safety and health offence in Australia, underscoring how seriously courts across our nation now treat breaches that cost lives.
You can read the original article on the news.com.au website.
Why Workplace Safety News Matters
Cases like these reinforce why construction, manufacturing and quarrying operators must maintain rigorous safety documentation and hazard controls. Falls from height and entrapment in machinery remain among the leading causes of serious injury and death across Australian worksites, according to Safe Work Australia data.
For further information on managing site-specific risks, safety professionals should review current SWMS and risk assessment documentation regularly.
Catch up on more workplace safety news from previous weeks:
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