Rasta Kemp: Dad, 24, dies after his clothes get caught on treadmill, pulling him into machine and impaling him
A forestry company has been fined over a fatal accident in which a young father was caught in a conveyor belt and impaled on a machine.
Rasta Kemp, 24, was killed while unloading timber from a sawmill in Benalla, north-east Victoria, in May 2018.
Father-of-one’s clothes got stuck in a conveyor belt mechanism that dragged him until he was impaled on a metal pallet, known as a platform, used to store materials , according to 7News.
Rasta Kemp, 24, was killed while unloading timber from a sawmill in Benalla, north-east Victoria, in May 2018.
WorkSafe Victoria found forestry company D&R Henderson could have prevented such an accident from happening by covering the conveyor belt.
“Investigators found that it would have been reasonably possible for the company to inform employees of the risk of becoming entangled in the rotating shaft, where to position themselves to avoid this, and to contact a supervisor to arrange repairs if the belts become detached from the conveyors.” ” said WorkSafe.
D&R Henderson pleaded guilty in the Melbourne County Court on Thursday to two charges under the Work Health and Safety Act.
The company was fined a total of $350,000 for failing to maintain safe work systems and for failing to provide safety information and training to its employees.
The ruling against the D&R Henderson timber mill brought little consolation to members of Mr Kemp’s grieving family (pictured). “Should have been closed permanently,” one said.
Narelle Beer, WorkSafe’s executive director of health and safety, said Mr Kemp’s death could have been avoided if the correct safety measures had been in place.
“Employers and rights holders must do everything they can to eliminate or reduce risks to workers from moving machinery, including providing safety or physical separation and instructing workers on their operation in safely,” she said.
Labor hire company Recruitment Select Pty Ltd, which hired Mr Kemp from D&R Henderson, has already been fined $50,000 over the incident.
The ruling against D&R Henderson brought little consolation to Mr Kemp’s grieving family members.
“It should have been closed permanently,” one said.
