Tanami’s Covid-19 chaos in spotlight with authorities to speak about crisis at event

Two health authorities will talk for the first time about the extent of the crisis they faced at the Tanami mine when it went into critical lockdown after the onsite spread of Covid-19.

THE senior director of health, safety and security for Newmont Australia, Andrew Golembka, and the National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre medical director Dianne Stephens will talk for the first time about the extent of the crisis they faced at the Tanami mine when it went into critical lockdown after the onsite spread of Covid-19.

The pair will address the Territory’s mining sector in Darwin on Friday at a Darwin Mining Club luncheon at DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Esplanade.

Their address comes at the same time that Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) chief executive Tania Constable has confirmed industry is deep in talks with the federal government on a rollout of a vaccination program for Australia’s resource sector’s workforce.

Ms Constable said the MCA wanted to help with the rollout to support its 256,000 workers as well as local and Indigenous communities in remote areas. She said the MCA was working with its member companies on how the vaccine could be delivered on operational mine sites, through regional hubs and in other locations.

More than 1600 people in three states were ordered into isolation and the Territory went into lockdown after a worker tested positive for Covid-19 at the Tanami mine in June. The man was asymptomatic and only discovered the infection when he was alerted to a potential hotel quarantine breach in Queensland through a message from interstate authorities. Professor Stephens went to the mine site to oversee the health response to the crisis.

Along with Matthew Hull, who is the case manager/field officer for Mates in Construction NT, they will share their experiences at the forefront of the NT’s recent Covid-19 outbreak – its impact on operations, industry and the wellbeing of workers and the communities in which they operate.

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Workers in the Tanami mine took to social media to vent over the mental anguish they endured during the lockdown. The Newmont Corporation has also shown a tougher stance on Covid-19, axing one of its most senior executives for refusing to abide by the company’s Covid-19 vaccination policy.

Newmont’s North American vice-president Dan Janney, a former boss of Rio Tinto’s Australian coal mines, was shown the door on Wednesday after a falling-out over the $50bn miner’s policy backing widespread vaccination to combat the pandemic.

For bookings to the luncheon, contact Giovanna Webb [e-mail] or 8981 4486.\