Kurt Hourigan named as miner killed in Ballarat mine collapse

Friends and family have shared tributes for Kurt Hourigan, 37, who died in a gold mine collapse on Wednesday night in Ballarat.

A miner trapped in a gold mine collapse on Wednesday night in Ballarat has died.

Kurt Hourigan, 37, was killed when he was pinned beneath rocks during a mine collapse at around 4:50pm on Wednesday.

Mr Hourigan’s body was recovered from the mine early on Thursday morning. The collapse occurred about 3km from the mine entrance and about 500m underground.

“I still can’t believe you are gone. I have always looked up to you,” family member Reece Hourigan wrote on social media.

Kurt Hourigan, 37, was killed when the mine he was working in collapsed, trapping him under rocks. Picture: Facebook

Mr Hourigan was from the small town of Bruthen, about 300km east of Melbourne.

The Australian Workers Union confirmed a miner had died in the accident.

“We had two workers that were air legging, which is a manual style of mining,” AWU Victoria State Secretary Ronnie Hayden said. “It’s our understanding that they were working under unsupported ground and that ground gave way, trapping both miners and killing one.”

A furious Mr Hayden said the fact that the man’s death was avoidable made it particularly devastating.

“This is absolutely devastating news,” he said. “It’s devastating because we’ve lost another worker and no worker should be injured or die at work. But it is even more devastating because it should have been avoided. They should not have been doing that task in that mine … our organisers have been out on to site to make sure that our members weren’t working under unsupported ground. Our members have raised concerns about this style of mining. And it seems to have fallen on deaf ears.”

Mr Hourigan’s final Facebook post, dated March 9, appeared to show him enjoying a trip to the popular seaside town of Lake Tyers with his young children.

The AWU implored the Victorian government to make sure industrial manslaughter laws were applied. “We are going to be pushing very hard to make sure that the industrial manslaughter laws are used,” Mr Hayden said. “Since industrial manslaughter laws have come in, we’ve had 169 Victorians killed at work. This year, 12 killed at work. And in the time since the laws have come in, we’ve had one prosecution and no jail time. This is not acceptable.”

“We want to make sure that we are putting the Victorian government on notice let them know that you create the laws, you need to ensure that you use the laws.”

Mr Hayden went on to slam Victory Minerals, the company who took on ownership and operation of the mine in December, for not prioritising safety.

“Me, personally, I would say that this is (the) fault of management,” Mr Hayden said. “That

will be left to the investigators (to decide). We will be making sure that the investigators talk to all of our members and our organisers to make sure that they get to the bottom of what’s happened. I also want to point out when this new company took over, they made the senior safety manager redundant and haven’t replaced them.”

WorkSafe are now believed to have taken ownership of the investigation into the incident.

The other miner caught in the collapse, a 21-year-old from Ballarat, was treated for serious lower body injuries before being flown to the Alfred Hospital. He remained there in a critical condition on Thursday morning.

A Victory Minerals spokeswoman offered the company’s sympathies to the loved ones of the deceased Bruthen man.

“It was with great sadness that we confirm one of our own has passed away,” she said.

“Our deepest sympathies and thoughts are with his family and all our people right now. Our absolute priority is supporting the wellbeing of our team members and their families and loved ones, as we all come to terms with this tragic news.”

She said the mine’s thoughts were with the family of the 21-year-old man in hospital. The Australian has contacted Victory Minerals for a response to Mr Hayden’s claims about workplace safety at the mine and the circumstances surrounding the accident.

Police confirmed that two miners were trapped while another 28 workers made it to a safety pod. They were brought to the surface and are not thought to have been at risk during the collapse.

Minerals Council of Australia chief executive Tania Constable spoke of her sadness at Wednesday’s deadly incident and said it was another reminder of the paramount importance of workplace safety.

Paramedics attend the scene on Wednesday.

“The MCA is deeply saddened by the fatality at the Mt Clear gold mine in Ballarat, Victoria,” Ms Constable said.

“We extend our sympathies to the family, friends and workmates of the miner, as well as the Ballarat community who will be deeply affected by this tragedy. Our thoughts are also with the miner who is being treated for injuries. Safety is the most important issue for our industry. This tragic event is a reminder of the need to always prioritise safety above all else. The minerals industry will continue to work hard to eliminate fatalities, injuries and occupational illnesses.”

A previous statement on the Victory Minerals company website said that there have been issues with blasting at the mine.

“Over recent months, our mining operations and blast vibrations have been impacting on our neighbours more than we would like,’’ it says.

“If this includes you, we apologise for this impact to you in your home. We want to assure you that Ballarat Gold Mine is working consciously to rectify disturbances going forward.

“Our licence conditions state that the vibration limit for blasting is 10mm/sec and that 95 per cent of all blasts must be below 5mm/sec. We have recently raised an internal incident report to ensure we investigate and then address additional corrective actions.

“Vibration attenuation varies considerably throughout the mine, with much larger blasts than that which occurred recently having no impact on vibration at surface.

“We commit to continually and proactively reviewing our practices to minimise neighbour disruption such as yours in the future. We will be engaging a blasting expert to assist us to minimise blast vibrations from specific areas within the underground mine that are having a greater impact on the community.”

The gold mine started operating in 2011.

“Mining techniques are based on a combination of ore generated from the development along the strike of the ore zone, mechanised drift and fill plus longhole bench stoping,” the company’s website states.

“Mining at Ballarat Gold Mine aims to maintain a production rate of 40,000 to 50,000 ounces of gold per year from underground drilling programs targeting resources adjacent to existing workings and which have significant additional potential for mine life extension.”

Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan said she was “thinking of every worker and every family who is impacted by this event”. “Tonight will be a long night for them and for the entire Ballarat community,” Ms Allan said on Wednesday.

The Mount Clear region is the location where police have searched over the past five weeks for the remains of missing Ballarat mother Samantha Murphy.