Worker struck in stomach by concrete prompts $72K fine

A concreter has been fined $72,000 after a 21-year-old worker sustained serious internal injuries after being struck while cleaning a high-pressure hose — the force of the impact being so severe that the worker was thrown against a fence.

The incident occurred in August 2021. The company had been engaged to pump concrete to the rear of a newly built house at Vale Park, where a patio and swimming pool were under construction.

At the conclusion of the work, three workers were attempting to clean residual concrete from the hose, a process that involved pushing the remaining concrete from the hose using air pressure and a foam ball. The workers decided to turn off the air tap and move the hose to the front yard, to avoid spraying the house with concrete.

Each worker created a kink in the section of hose they held, to control the remaining air pressure as the excess concrete was released. They were unaware, however, that air pressure was continuing to build up in the hose. The hose began to whip when a kink was released, causing one of the workers to lose control of the hose and excess concrete to strike him in the stomach, throwing him into a fence.

Treated at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, he sustained a tear to the small bowel, internal bleeding, and bruising to the duodenum and colon; he was placed in an induced coma and underwent surgery before being discharged from hospital two weeks later. While workers were briefed by the crew supervisor before the start of the job, there was no safe work method statement for the task, which is a requirement for high-risk construction work.

An investigation was undertaken by SafeWork SA and Borelli Concrete Pumping Pty Ltd was charged with a category 2 offence against the Work Health and Safety Act 2012 for failing to comply with its health and safety duty. Following prosecution, Borelli Concrete Pumping Pty Ltd pleaded guilty and was sentenced in the South Australian Employment Tribunal on 23 May 2025.

“It knew that its work is high-risk construction work. It knew that using air pressure to clean the hoses was a potentially dangerous procedure,” Deputy President Magistrate Eaton wrote. “Yet it relied only on informal and undocumented safety briefings and inadequate assessment and management of obvious risk. Its offending was objectively serious.”

The company has since upgraded its WHS systems and practices — and supported the injured worker after the incident. A conviction was recorded and the company was fined $72,000, and also ordered to pay a Victims of Crime Levy of $437 and a contribution of $2310 to SafeWork SA’s legal costs.

“The serious injuries suffered by the worker were easily preventable had the company appropriately assessed the risks of pressure build-up in the hose, considered what may occur when activities change, such as moving the hose during the process, and ensuring the pressure tap was of a type that could not inadvertently be opened,” said SafeWork SA Executive Director Glenn Farrell.

“The importance of a safe work method statement (SWMS) for high-risk work is reiterated in this scenario. An appropriate SWMS would have clearly articulated all the hazards associated with this type of work and how such risks could be controlled. Each worker should then have been taken through the SWMS to ensure everyone is aware and understands how the risk of injury is to be minimised.

“It is not good enough to simply rely on a verbal briefing when performing high-risk construction work.”

Image credit: iStock.com/isaravut. Stock image used is for illustrative purposes only.