Unplanned movement of bulldozer into reclaim feeder

What happened?

On 30 May 2023 a bulldozer was conducting ‘push in’ activities on a coarse ore stockpile when an unplanned movement occurred, resulting in the bulldozer travelling past the stockpile lip and sliding forward into the reclaim feeder below.

This incident follows recent safety alerts and bulletins from the Inspectorate regarding coal stockpile operations, and bulldozers exposed to uncontrolled movement/falls into stockpile voids.

How did it happen?

Investigation into the incident is ongoing, however several contributing factors were identified including:

the creation of a significant 'feed cone' through operation of the feeders to a point where they were no longer covered with material
limited visibility of the stockpile edge or 'lip' when pushing uphill on the stockpile
the dynamic nature of the stockpile edge and the changing position of the edge during operations.

Key issues

Insufficient engineering controls to prevent development of significant 'feed cones' in stockpiles
Reliance on lower order administrative or procedural controls for mobile equipment operations on stockpiles
Visibility and identification of edges of stockpiles when conducting mobile equipment operations.

Recommendations

Mines should:

ensure the hazard of mobile equipment entering feeders on stockpiles is identifies as a potential fatal hazard on site
ensure appropriate controls are put in place according to the hierarchy of controls
review the types of mobile equipment used for stockpile operations to ensure only appropriate types are being used
ensure controls are put in place to eliminate the creation of significant 'feed cones' at stockpile feeders during mobile equipment operations. Such controls could include the automatic monitoring of stockpile levels and automatic controls of feeders
consider fitment of camera-based vision systems for mobile equipment to aid operator visibility
consider fitment of GPS-based positioning and hazard identification systems for mobile equipment.

Investigations are ongoing and further information may be published as it becomes available. The information in this publication is what is known at the time of writing.

We issue Safety Notices to draw attention to the occurrence of a serious incident, raise awareness of risks, and prompt assessment of your existing controls.

References and further information

The Queensland and New South Wales mines inspectorates have published information regarding the hazards of operating buklldozers on stockpiles. Receht industry safety alerts include:

Authorised by Trevor Brown - Deputy Chief Inspector – Mineral Mines & Quarries

Contact: Mark Genge, Inspector of Mines , +61 459 159 054 QldMinesInspectorate@rshq.qld.gov.au

Issued by Resources Safety & Health Queensland

Safety: This information is issued to promote safety through experience. It is not to be taken as a statement of law and must not be construed to waive or modify any legal obligation.

Placement: Place this announcement on noticeboards and ensure all relevant people in your organisation receive a copy, understand the content, findings and recommendations as applicable to their operation. SSEs should validate that recommendations have been implemented.

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All information on this page (Unplanned movement of bulldozer into reclaim feeder - https://www.rshq.qld.gov.au/safety-notices/mines/unplanned-movement-of-bulldozer-into-reclaim-feeder) is correct as of time of printing (May 8, 2024 6:46 pm).