NT WorkSafe find man was at extreme risk of electrocution

NT WorkSafe has found a refrigeration worker was put at extreme risk of electrocution when he was sent in to clean a set of cable which were still live. Read their warning for the industry.

The cable lugs and terminals were live at the time of the incident (right). Picture: NT WorkSafe

A WorkSafe investigation has found a refrigeration worker was at extreme risk of electrocution when he was burned while cleaning an imported chiller.

The injured worker, as well as two other workers, were working on an electrical cubicle of a newly installed chiller, last month.

The others were conducting commissioning work using the chiller’s programmable logic controller at the time of the incident.

Meanwhile, the injured worker was sent in to clean corrosion on some of the cable lugs and terminals using a drill with a wire brush attachment.

The cable lugs and terminals were live at the time of the incident (right). Picture: NT WorkSafe

NT WorkSafe found a few of the electrical cubicles had been de-energised, however the specific cubicle the injured worker went to clean was still energised at the time.

They did not test for live parts prior to cleaning, but relied on advice from their colleagues that the cubicle had been de-energised.

As the wire brush came into contact with live parts it resulted in an arc flash which injured the worker.

The arc flash melted and fused the metal brush attachment. Picture: NT WorkSafe

The live parts were energised from 1250 amp circuit breaker at 415 volts which meant the worker would have been at extreme risk of electrocution had he physically made contact.

NT WorkSafe has reminded all refrigeration mechanics and electrical contractors of the dangers of working or near energised electrical parts.

Steps such as not performing commissioning and maintenance work at the same time and having all workers familiarise themselves how the plant works would help mitigate risk.

WorkSafe also stressed the importance of disconnecting power so workers could safely work.