Rio Tinto subsidiaries fined over worker’s arm entanglement injury in 2017

A Karratha Magistrate has imposed a total fine of $90,000 on two Rio Tinto subsidiaries for failing to provide and maintain a hazard-free work environment after a worker’s arm was caught in a moving conveyor. The incident occurred at Dampier’s Parker Point sample station in November 2017 when the worker, part of whose job was to clean machinery, got his arm caught between the head pulley and snub idler while inspecting a large conveyor from below. In a statement, the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety revealed personnel were able to shut the conveyor down and free the worker’s arm after he made an emergency radio call. The worker suffered a fractured wrist and forearm and serious tissue injuries and was treated at Nickol Bay Hospital. Handing down his findings on Friday, Karratha Magistrate Gavin MacLean said failure to eliminate risks could have grave consequences and sentences to such offences must deliver that message. “The industry, by nature, included some degree of these incidents to arise,” he said. “The risks, no doubt, presented a real danger.” But Mr MacLean said he accepted the companies showed “genuine remorse” which was inherent in their early guilty plea. DMIRS mines safety director Andrew Chaplyn said there were a number of actions mine operators could adopt to minimise the risks of working near heavy equipment, including conveyors. “Mine operators must provide adequate guarding to all accessible nip and sheer points on a conveyor,” he said. “While employees at Parker Point were instructed not to enter the area beneath the head pulley while the conveyor was moving, this did not prevent the injured worker from doing so which ultimately exposed him to entanglement. “Employers should enforce suitable safe work practices and also conduct risk assessments on all machinery to identify hazards.” A Rio Tinto spokesperson said the companies accepted the penalties imposed by the court. “The health and safety of our workers, contractors and communities is our highest priority and we have taken actions to learn from this incident,” they said. Pilbara Iron Company (Services) Pty Ltd was fined $50,000 and Hamersley Iron Pty Ltd $40,000 after the companies pleaded guilty to failing to provide a safe work environment, with costs adjourned until March 4. It comes days after an independent report on Rio Tinto’s workplace culture revealed bullying, sexism and racism within its ranks.