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Victoria and Queensland have urged employers and contractors who operate mobile machinery to take powerline safety more seriously after a spate of serious incidents.
WorkSafe Victoria has urged employers operating mobile machinery near overhead powerlines to prioritise safety, following a spate of electric shock incidents and near misses. Since November 2020, one worker has died and five others have been hospitalised with serious injuries after their machinery contacted powerlines.
The death occurred on 12 November 2020, when a farm hand died after a raised attachment hit powerlines while using a telehandler to move hay bales. This year, two construction workers were injured, one critically, when a crane arm struck live 22 kV lines at Dromana on 12 April. A 72-year-old farmer was airlifted to hospital on 27 April after the auger he was moving with a forklift touched powerlines, resulting in serious injuries at Harston, near Shepparton.
There were also two incidents involving the farming and transportation industries — on 30 April a tipper truck driver was taken to hospital in a serious condition after his truck hit a high-voltage conductor at Narracan, near Moe. On 3 May, a 54-year-old construction worker was taken to hospital in a critical condition following an electric shock when the arm of the excavator on his truck struck powerlines at Packenham.
There was also a serious incident on 12 March, when the Princes Highway was shut at Panmure due to powerlines being pulled down onto the road by a dump truck. Investigations into six of the seven incidents are ongoing.
WorkSafe Victoria Executive Director of Health and Safety Julie Nielsen said care has to be taken when using machinery near electrical wires. Nielsen urged all duty holders to review their systems of work when operating near overhead powerlines.
“Electrocution can occur in just moments, and if an electric shock doesn’t kill, injuries can be severe and life-long,” Nielsen said. “Make sure you assess the environment you are operating machinery in and keep clear of live electrical cables, because WorkSafe will not hesitate to prosecute duty holders that fail to protect workers.”
In September 2020, a quarry at Maude was convicted and fined $35,000 after a worker escaped injury when his excavator contacted powerlines. WorkSafe Victoria inspectors found there were no protective barriers or warning devices to prevent the incident occurring.
In Queensland, a young Dalby farm worker has shared his confronting story of a near-fatal workplace electrical incident to raise awareness and give other young workers a voice. Jason Daniels was 17 when the grain auger he was moving contacted an overhead powerline. The resulting electrical shock left him hospitalised for two months, including time in intensive care, with serious burns.
After a couple of years, multiple skin grafts and lots of physiotherapy, Daniels is on the road to recovery and sharing his story through a film, to make farm workers think about safety, particularly when it concerns electricity.
“I want to warn others about the risks of working near overhead powerlines and get young workers to speak up if they believe the work they are doing is unsafe,” Daniels said. “Trust me, a serious workplace injury like mine has a major impact on you, your family and your mates.”
The eight-minute film highlights electrical safety issues and the importance of young workers being heard. The safety film is part of a suite that Workplace Health and Safety Queensland has produced to change attitudes towards working safely and promoting positive behavioural change. The films are shown on worksites at pre-shift ‘toolbox talks’ and in safety meetings, with some individual films having up to half a million views.
Queensland’s Industrial Relations Minister Grace Grace said that contact with overhead powerlines is one of the most persistent and problematic electrical safety risks in the state. “Despite his youth, Jason raised his safety concerns about the auger and the powerline but was told there was no time to lower it,” Grace said. “Being ignored almost cost him his life.”
In the past six years, 52 serious electrical incidents have happened in Queensland involving overhead powerlines, and six people have died. People most at risk are farmers, construction workers and transport workers. The state’s Electrical Safety Office is working with energy networks, industry associations, the agricultural industry and community groups to increase awareness and improve work practices near overhead powerlines.
To avoid contact with powerlines, employers and contractors using trucks and other mobile plant should identify all powerlines onsite and at site entrance or exit points. Employers and contractors should also comply with the No-Go-Zone rules and spotter requirements when operating mobile plant around powerlines.
Weather conditions should also be monitored, as powerlines can sag in extreme heat or sway in strong winds. Powerlines are also more difficult to see at dawn and dusk. Employers and contractors should designate travel paths and loading and unloading areas well away from powerlines, with warning signs or other visual indicators on each side of the powerline to warn operators and drivers.
Employers and contractors should also consider the type and height of heavy vehicles, plant and machinery and if it can operate near the powerlines. Drivers and operators should also receive instructions about the risks of powerlines onsite, and the controls in place to prevent hitting the powerlines.
If routinely working near powerlines, employers and contractors should consider engineering controls, such as presence sensing systems that can detect powerlines and interlock plant movements. Employers and contractors should also consult with workers on safe systems of work for operating near powerlines.
