A “long-serving” and “much-loved” worker has died in an accident believed to have involved a crane at a coal mine west of Mackay in central Queensland, triggering a major investigation.
Resources Safety and Health Queensland (RSHQ) were notified of the death of a worker at the Byerwen mine on Saturday morning.
Although the cause of the accident has not been confirmed, initial reports suggested a pick-up and transport crane was involved.
“Our thoughts today are with the employee’s family, friends and colleagues,” said Rob Djukic, chief executive of RSHQ.
“We are committed to conducting a thorough investigation, but as it is already underway, we will be limited in what we can say.”
The Byerwen mine is located at Suttor, approximately 200 kilometres west of Mackay in Queensland’s Bowen Basin.
An RSHQ coal inspector and a Serious Incident Investigation Unit investigator are at the scene of the accident.
“RSHQ has placed a huge emphasis on safety around pick and carry cranes, particularly over the last 12 months, through industry discussions (and) safety alerts,” Djukic said.
A “long-serving” and “much-loved” worker has died in an accident reportedly involving a crane at a coal mine (pictured) west of Mackay in central Queensland, triggering a major investigation.
The Byerwen mine is located at Suttor, approximately 200 km west of Mackay in Queensland’s Bowen Basin. Illustrated map
Emergency services were called to the scene shortly after 7am, where the 48-year-old man was found unconscious before being pronounced dead.
“The death of a long-standing, highly-loved member of the QCoal team has shocked the entire organization,” the company said in a statement.
‘We are focused on supporting the affected family and staff who are obviously devastated by this tragedy.
‘Police are investigating the incident and QCoal will not be commenting further until more details are available.’
Queensland Natural Resources Minister Scott Stewart also said the incident would be investigated.
“It is too early to know how this happened but a full investigation will be conducted by the independent regulator Resources Safety and Health Queensland,” Stewart said.
‘No death should happen in any workplace and my thoughts today are with this man’s family, friends and colleagues.
“A full and thorough investigation will be conducted into how this occurred.”
He Mail He said the incident occurred at a mine camp, where most of the workers are housed and where infrastructure work was being carried out.
A Resources Safety and Health Queensland coal inspector and a Serious Incident Investigation Unit investigator are at the scene of the accident. The mine is pictured.
A Queensland Police Service spokesman confirmed a report would be prepared for the coroner.
Representatives of the Mining and Energy Union head to the site.
“The MEU has received the terrible news of the death of a worker at the Byerwen mine this morning,” a MEU spokeswoman said.
“Our thoughts are with the family and co-workers as we work to understand what has happened.”
