NT WorkSafe: Darwin worker crushed by more than 1.2 tonnes of steel beams

A Darwin subcontractor spent two months in hospital and faces many months more of rehab after being crushed by more than 1.2 tonnes of steel beams at a workplace. What NT WorkSafe say contributed to the incident.

A Darwin subcontractor faces months of rehabilitation after being crushed by a 1.2 tonne bundle of steel beams (pictured) while standing beside a trailer in late September 2023. Picture: NT WorkSafe

A Darwin subcontractor is “pretty lucky to be alive” and faces months of rehabilitation after being crushed by more than 1.2 tonnes of bundled steel beams at a workplace.

According to a statement by NT WorkSafe, the incident occurred in late September 2023 when two workers were loading bundles of steel onto a trailer using a forklift.

The injured worker, who was a subcontractor, was acting as a spotter and standing on the opposite side of the trailer to the forklift, when a load slipped from the forklift tynes as it was being lowered.

“Initial reports of the incident to NT WorkSafe indicated the worker had sustained life threatening injuries,” the statement read.

“Fortunately the worker survived but suffered multiple fractures throughout his body and was hospitalised for two months.

“The worker is still receiving medical treatment and faces months of rehabilitation.”

A spokesman for NT WorkSafe told the NT News that the matter remains under investigation, with no charges laid, and that the worker is “pretty lucky to be alive”.

According to NT Worksafe’s statement, the regulator believes there were a number of contributing factors to the accident.

They include the “awkward” nature of the 1.2 tonne-plus load, which measured six by one metres; the absence of a pallet, leading to less friction between the plastic-wrapped load and the forklift tynes; and the possibility that the forklift mast was tilted forward when the load was lowered, causing slippage.

A Darwin subcontractor who suffered “life threatening injuries” on the job in late September last year spent two months in hospital and faces ongoing rehabilitation. Picture: Che Chorley

The forklift operator may also have lost sight of the spotter, “who had moved to stand near the load as it was being lowered,” NT WorkSafe said.

The regulator urged businesses across the Territory that regularly use forklifts to be mindful of several safety measures.

Awkward loads that have the potential to slip should be placed on a pallet, a pre-start check of the forklift and risk assessments should be conducted before use, and communication methods between operator and spotter should be established prior to the work.

Workers “should never approach the forklift and assume that the operator can see them”.

The NT WorkSafe spokesman was unable to confirm the exact date or location of the incident, citing the need to ensure procedural fairness to the business while the investigation takes place.