Kilcoy sawmill fined $300k after worker killed by debarking machine

A Queensland business has been fined $300,000 after the death of an experienced worker who was killed when hit by a 500kg log.

Colin Charles Waugh died in 2023 after an accident at a Kilcoy sawmill.

A Queensland business has been fined $300,000 after the death of an experienced worker who was struck by a 500kg log.

Colin Charles Waugh, 63, died at his workplace – Kilcoy Timber Co Pty Ltd – on January 4, 2023, after he was hit by a log that was ejected from a de-barker machine.

Mr Waugh had been a sawmiller since he left high school, and the manager of the Kilcoy sawmill for almost a decade when he died.

His employer was charged with failure to comply with health and safety duty and pleaded guilty. The company was sentenced in Brisbane Magistrates Court last month.

The court heard the company had not implemented proper controls on the de-barker machine, including perimeter guarding, and had not instructed operators to switch off the controls before conducting maintenance.

In sentencing, Magistrates Joseph Pinder said the defendant’s approach to safety was “blase” and “wholly inadequate”.

“He noted the WHS (Workplace Health and Safety) role was vacant and not advertised for two years, and the concession by the director that not much was done to ensure safety,” a court report said.

Colin Charles Waugh died in 2023 after an accident at a Kilcoy saw mill.

“His Honour found that general deterrence was important in circumstances and said he was concerned that the machine was operated for a significant period without the required guarding.”

The company was remorseful and entered an early guilty plea to the court.

Magistrate Pinder ordered the company be fined $300,000, with no conviction recorded. The maximum fine for the offence is $1.5 million.

Mr Waugh was a devoted Christian and had been manager at Kilcoy Timber for almost a decade before his death.

“For Colin, sawmilling was his professional life. He started working at a sawmill owned by his uncle in Armidale after leaving school at the end of Year 12,” his family said in a statement.

“After starting work in his uncle’s mill, he never looked at any other line of work for the satisfaction he derived from doing a good job.

“Colin’s quick wit and cheek ensured that there was always a smile or all out laughter around him. He was the glue that kept his working team together.

“Colin was a passionate strong-willed man who backed down to nobody. But workmates also all experienced his big heart, humour, and kindness in some form or another.”