$45,000 fine after worker paralysed in water tank fall
15 July 2024•BlueSafe Team•Source: WorkSafe VIC
Watertank Solutions Victoria Pty Ltd has been fined $45,000 after two workers fell while removing a water tank roof at Yendon, leaving one with paraplegia.
The company pleaded guilty to two charges of failing to provide and maintain a safe system of work. It was sentenced in the Ballarat Magistrates' Court on Friday 5 July and ordered to pay an additional $3,960 in costs.
The court heard the company had been hired to repair, drain and clean an in-ground concrete tank, including removing and replacing its metal roof. The tank was about 2.1 metres deep, with its outer wall extending 45 centimetres above ground and the roof apex about 3.1 metres above the tank floor.
In April 2022, workers were removing roofing panels while standing on metal planks balanced between the tank's outer wall and roof apex. There was no fall protection. One worker was on a plank at the apex and another was on the ground beside the tank when both fell while trying to shake a panel loose.
The worker at ground level fell head-first into the tank and sustained serious head and neck injuries that resulted in paraplegia. The worker who fell from the roof injured his shoulder.
A third worker climbed into the tank and helped the worker with the shoulder injury keep their semi-conscious colleague's head above water. They then used a ratchet strap to pull him from the tank.
WorkSafe inspectors found that no safe work method statement (SWMS) had been prepared, despite this being required for high risk construction work.
The investigation found the company could reasonably have reduced or eliminated the fall risk through passive fall prevention, such as scaffolding, or a fixed ladder for roof access, along with a perimeter guardrail or fall arrest harness at the tank edge.
WorkSafe Executive Director Health and Safety Sam Jenkin said there was no excuse for failing to take the well-known risk of falls from height seriously. "In this case, the employer failed to take even the most basic of precautions for working at heights and, as a result, one man has suffered catastrophic and life-changing injuries," Mr Jenkin said.
How Blue Safe can help: Our free SWMS tool can help you document hazards and controls for high risk construction work involving falls from height. Create a free SWMS