Trapped miner, 37, dies in Ballarat Gold Mine collapse as another fights for life in hospital
The body of a 37-year-old Bruthen man killed in the Ballarat Gold Mine collapse has been recovered as a key Victorian union calls for the mine’s owners to be prosecuted for workplace manslaughter.
Victoria
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A miner pinned underground following a collapse at the Ballarat Gold Mine has died despite rescue attempts, as a second worker fights for his life in a Melbourne hospital.
The death has prompted a key Victorian union to call for the mine’s owner to be prosecuted for workplace manslaughter while WorkSafe Victoria has warned its “complex and detailed” probe could take up to two years.
The body of the killed miner, a 37-year-old man from Bruthen near Bairnsdale in Victoria’s east, was recovered Thursday morning.
The death follows a collapse at the mine which trapped more than 30 miners deep underground.
Ballarat Gold Mine owner Victory Minerals said the dead miner’s body had been brought to the surface about 6am Thursday.
“It was with great sadness that we confirm one of our own has passed away,” the company said in a statement.
“Our deepest sympathies and thoughts are with his family and all our people right now.”
A coroner’s van left the mine site about 9am, indicating the recovery of the miner’s body had been completed.
The man had been trapped 500m underground and about 3km from the mine’s entrance by the collapse which occurred about 4.50pm Wednesday.
A second worker, a 21-year-old man from Ballarat, suffered life-threatening injuries from falling rocks.
He was flown to The Alfred hospital with lower body injuries on Wednesday and remained in critical condition on Thursday morning.
Another 29 miners involved in the collapse were able to make their way to an underground safety pod.
They were rescued Wednesday evening and none suffered injuries.
There has been confusion around just how many miners were underground at the time of the accident with initial reports of 31 later reduced to 27.
Police on midmorning Thursday confirmed 31 miners were involved in the incident — 29 had sheltered in a safety pod while two had been trapped.
Australian Workers’ Union Victorian secretary Ronnie Hayden slammed the owners of the mine, saying workers had been forced to work in unsafe conditions and the accident should not have happened.
He said the Bruthen man’s death was “devastating”.
“It’s devastating because yet we’ve lost another worker and no worker should be injured at work,” he said on Thursday.
“But it is even more devastating because it should have been avoided. They should not have been doing that task in that line.
“Our members are angry, our organisers are angry.”
Mr Hayden said the two miners were working on “unsupported” ground and had been made to do a “manual” style of mining which involved drilling into rock to create a tunnel when the ground they were working on collapsed.
“This form of air legging shouldn’t be used to do this type of work,” he said.
“The information that we’re getting back was, this was a quick, cheap and easy way to chase gold.”
Mr Hayden said the mine’s owner had not been forthcoming with the union about the accident.
Mr Hayden said 169 workers had died on the job since Victoria’s workplace manslaughter laws came into effect in 2020.
“We’re putting the government on notice,” Mr Hayden said.
“We are going to be pushing very hard to make sure that the industrial manslaughter laws are used.
“We need to make sure, if we are introducing laws, we are holding bosses accountable to those laws.”
WorkSafe Victoria was at the mine site on Thursday probing the collapse.
The agency’s health and safety executive director Narelle Beer said the regulator’s investigation would be “complex and detailed”.
The regulator could take up to two years to probe the incident, which has halted operations at the mine until the investigation is complete, Dr Beer said.
“It’s a really tragic event that’s it’s occurred in Ballarat and we all know that there’s been a number of tragic events that have occurred here of late,” Dr Beer said, referring to the disappearance of 51-year-old Samantha Murphy.
“Particularly for a community that’s experienced this sort of grief, to have another one who is so young, it’s tragic.
“WorkSafe would like to send our condolences to the family, friends, the working community and the community at home. Our hearts are with you all.”
A “large number” of investigators will explore whether the mine was “grossly negligent” or should be charged under industrial manslaughter laws.
“We’ll conduct a thorough investigation, we’ll look at all avenues to understand what led up to the situation, what systems of safety we have in place, and whether there’s any been any breaches of the regulations,” Dr Beer said.
WorkSafe has attended the mine the past but Dr Beer would not be drawn on whether this was due to previous safety complaints or incidents.
“Mining is an inherently dangerous industry,” she said.
A WorkSafe family liaison officer has been offering support to the family of the deceased Bruthen man and the other miners who escaped.
Premier Jacinta Allan on Thursday sent her condolences to the family and friends of the killed worker, labelling his death a “terrible tragedy”.
“This has been a terrible accident, a really difficult scene,” she said.
“My thoughts and condolences and sympathies go out to that man’s family and loved ones.”
The Premier, who visited Ballarat Thursday morning, said it was “far too soon to be drawn on any speculation” about what went wrong.
Ms Allan recognised that the union was “quite understandably” grieving for the loss of one of their members.
“They do very strong and important work in representing workplace safety for their members across this industry,” she said.
Ms Allan said the government would be open to any reforms proposed following the investigation, noting the union would be involved.
“We have always stood with workers,” she said.
“Everyone deserves the right to go to work and go to work safely and then come home at the end of the day to their loved ones.”
Federal Ballarat MP Catherine King said the community would step up to support each other throughout this difficult time.
“My thoughts are with everyone affected by the tragedy at the Ballarat Gold Mine, and in particular the families and workmates of the deceased man and the injured man in hospital,” she said.
Federal Resources Minister Madeleine King said she was deeply saddened by the death of the miner, adding her thoughts were with his family and workmates.
“Australia’s prosperity is built on the hard work of miners around the country,” Ms King said.
“Workers deserve to come home safe from a shift or a long swing away from home.”
Minerals Council of Australia chief Tania Constable extended her sympathies to the family, friends and workmates of the killed miner and said it was a reminder that safety needs to be prioritised above all else in the minerals industry.
“The MCA is deeply saddened by the fatality at the Mt Clear gold mine in Ballarat,” Ms Constable said.
“This tragic event is a reminder of the need to always prioritise safety above all else.”
In a late-night press conference on Wednesday, Ballarat Acting Inspector Lisa MacDougall said the trapped worker’s family was “extremely distressed” and were being supported by Victoria Police.
“Work is under way to safely access that position and assess their condition,” she said at the 10.30pm press conference.
“The operation is ongoing.”
About 30 emergency service personnel were involved in the rescue mission on Wednesday.
An ambulance helicopter flew to the scene early in the evening and left just after 7pm.
Access to the site was restricted to emergency services officials and mine workers.
WorkSafe inspectors were also on scene.
“WorkSafe has been notified of an incident at the underground mine in Mount Clear near Ballarat, and inspectors and a technical specialist are responding,” a WorkSafe spokeswoman said.
Ballarat’s last remaining gold mine has had a troubled financial past, collapsing into administration in March last year.
It was bought out of liquidation by London hedge fund Acheron Capital which bought the Balmaine Gold and Golden Point Group companies, subsidiaries of Singapore-based company Shen Yao Holdings.
Shen Yao Holdings is being pursued by liquidators for more than $30m in unpaid loans.
Victorian regulators accused the former owners of breaching workplace safety laws in 2021, alleging there weren’t updated safety plans and that people had been put into senior underground mining jobs without the required qualifications.
The last major mine rescue mission in Ballarat was in 2007 when 27 underground workers were trapped by a cave-in at a mine site operated by Lihir Gold.
They were winched to safety after a tunnel 700m below the surface at Mount Clear partially collapsed.
Mount Clear has been the focus of nationwide news in recent weeks after the area was searched for any trace of missing mother of three Samantha Murphy.
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