$897,500 fine follows fatal crane chain crush injuries

A drill services company has been fined $897,500 (and ordered to pay almost $6500 in costs) over the death of a worker who was trapped between an overhead crane chain and a handrail on a skid assembly.

The incident occurred in February 2023. The worker suffered fatal crush injuries when he attempted to move a skid-mounted mud pump (skid assembly) on a trailer that had been placed on trestles.

The skid assembly was placed on the trestles in an improvised configuration that meant it was inherently unstable and prone to tipping, and the weight of the skid assembly and its centre of gravity were not known or assessed at any time prior to the incident.

Assigned to work on the skid assembly after it had been lifted onto the trestles, the worker was standing on the skid assembly and operating the overhead crane using a handheld crane control pendant when the trailer unexpectedly tipped sideways, trapping him between the chain from the overhead crane and a handrail on the skid assembly.

A licensed dogger, the worker would have had some knowledge of how to connect loads to cranes; however, the company did not provide verification of competency or training and did not require the worker to complete a risk assessment and lift plan before doing the job.

“There has been a significant number of injuries and fatalities in recent years involving lifting of loads and the use of overhead traveling cranes,” WorkSafe WA Commissioner Sally North said.

North also said that the incident was the culmination of a number of failures by the company, including “not performing a thorough and documented risk assessment of the workplace, not implementing safe work procedures for the use of overhead cranes and not ensuring that lift plans were created and followed”.

“The result was that the load was placed in an unstable position, with the worst possible consequences,” North added. “In this case, this should have included strict controls on lifting loads such as a lift plan, designated lifting areas and exclusion zones, along with training, instruction and supervision.

“The court has imposed a substantial monetary penalty that sends a strong message to other workplaces about identifying, assessing and controlling critical risks in consultation with workers.”

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