Telco company and director fined $545,000 after gas leak injury

National Infrastructure Solutions was sentenced in its absence at Moorabbin Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 4 June after being found guilty of two offences under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. The company was convicted and fined $250,000 for reckless conduct endangering persons at a workplace and another $250,000 for failing to maintain a safe system of work. It was also ordered to pay $4,210 in costs.

Felice, 56, pleaded guilty to one charge of reckless conduct endangering persons at a workplace. He was convicted at the same court on Monday 23 June, fined $45,000 and ordered to pay $4,284 in costs.

The incident occurred in January 2023 when two workers struck an underground gas pipe during excavation work on a nature strip in Bentleigh East. The court heard Felice repeatedly instructed them to keep digging and repair the pipe rather than notify the gas company and emergency services, seeking to avoid an incident report.

One worker repeatedly entered the excavation to try to clamp the pipe, coming out short of breath each time. On his final attempt, he entered head first and lost consciousness after inhaling gas in the confined space. His colleague dragged him out, and he was taken to hospital with respiratory arrest, broken blood vessels in one eye and chest pains associated with gas inhalation and resuscitation efforts. He was also diagnosed with acute stress disorder.

The court heard that the company and Felice had both engaged in reckless conduct that exposed another person to the danger of serious injury or death through asphyxiation from the gas leak.

It was reasonably practicable for the company to have a safe system of work requiring work to stop after the pipe was struck. That system should also have required immediate contact with the pipe’s owner to stop the leak and carry out repairs, barricading the area to keep vehicles and the public away, and moving workers to a safe distance.

WorkSafe Executive Director Health and Safety Sam Jenkin said the case showed the risks workers face when employers do not follow incident protocols. “By avoiding the paperwork of reporting a gas leak, this company and director deliberately put its workers and the public at risk of serious injury and even death,” Mr Jenkin said.

“There’s no excuse for an employer to expose workers to this kind of risk and WorkSafe will not hesitate to take action against employers who take shortcuts that gamble with people’s safety and wellbeing.”

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