The death of a man on a mine site last week has revealed a schism in messages from the regulator and those the industry was trying to convey.

Resources Safety and Health Queensland (RSHQ) referred Industry Queensland to their annual report while turning down the opportunity to respond directly about the death of a man in his 50s and the serious injury of another in his 20s last week at Oaky Creek mine near Tieri last week.

The annual report showed one fatality in the 2024 financial year while 157 workers sustained injuries requiring treatment as hospital inpatients.

There had been three deaths so far this financial year including two on QCoal’s Byerwan Mine.

High risk

In the report, RSHQ chief executive officer Robert Djukic spoke of a ‘long-term initiative to focus on high-risk areas.’

The Mining and Energy Union pointed out that three of the four deaths this calendar year were in areas dealing with mundane tasks including lifting.

The union’s general secretary Steve Smyth said other activities including tyre handling were notable in their lack of training and procedure.

Mr Smyth said ‘workers continued to be put into roles without the appropriate competencies needed for mechanical people’.

The mines inspectorate was yet to make its report on last week’s fatality which was above ground and involved the handling of a conveyor belt as part of the maintenance cycle.

Mr Smyth said the industry proved its safety competence and cited longwall panel development as an area where they’d identified hazards and better controlled the risks.

The industry had taken its eye off the risks presented by mundane tasks including lifting, tyre handling and in the case of open cut mines, vehicle interaction, he said.

Communication

RSHQ put a lot of emphasis on the development of communication aligning with recommendations to come out of the Brady Review titled Fatal Accidents in Queensland Mines and Quarries from 2000 to 2019.

Mr Djuric quoted the review in saying ‘improving the reporting culture of incidents within the industry, including high potential incidents drives the focus towards reviewing current controls and systems in place.’

Related: Liability fears restrict mine safety development

This is the issue pointed out by Resources Centre of Excellence chief executive officer Steven Boxall.

Mr Boxall said communication should be a given on Bowen Basin mine sites since they operated on the same coal seam and practiced the same procedures.

But it’s not, because mine owners and individual workers are concerned with liability, Mr Boxall said.

Mr Boxall went as far to say this information should be shared in a ‘protected environment.’

Both Mr Boxall and Mr Djuric said there had been positive improvement around government, regulators and industry coming together to share information.

A lot more needed to be done, Mr Boxall said.

See below for an earlier report on the accident: