Anglo Coal found not guilty over 2019 death of Bradley Hardwick in Central Queensland mine

A mining company has been found guilty of failing to discharge its health and safety obligations resulting in the bodily harm of three workers but not guilty over the death of another man.

Mine worker Bradley Hardwick who died in an incident between a grader and a personnel carrier at Moranbah North Mine on February 20, 2019. Picture: Supplied

A Central Queensland mining company has been found not guilty of causing the death of a worker on its site despite flaws in its health and safety management system.

Father of two Bradley Hardwick was killed at the Moranbah North coal mine in an industrial vehicle accident on February 20, 2019.

At the time of his death Mr Hardwick had alighted from a 14.84-tonne grader which later proceeded to roll backwards due to a faulty braking system and crashed into another vehicle carrying a number of miners who were injured.

The collision occurred in the mine’s drift – a tunnel through which workers and machinery enter and leave the mine.

Mr Hardwick’s body was found in the drift near where he had parked the grader.

An autopsy concluded Mr Hardwick’s death was caused by multiple injuries from an industrial vehicle collision.

Mine worker Bradley Hardwick, 47, died when a grader rolled on him and a personnel carrier at Moranbah North Mine in Central Queensland on February 20, 2019. Picture: Supplied

Mine operator Anglo Coal – Moranbah North Management was charged with failing to discharge its health and safety obligation causing death or grievous bodily harm.

It pleaded not guilty.

The single charge comprised two complaints of causing Mr Hardwick’s death and separately the bodily harm of three workers whose vehicle had been hit by the grader.

The prosecution alleged the grader struck and killed Mr Hardwick after he had parked it and it began to roll uncontrollably down the drift when its park break failed, before smashing into the drift runner carrying the other workers who were injured.

The Brisbane Magistrates Court on Thursday heard the grader had an unusual design that saw the service brakes automatically engaged whenever the park brake was used.

While Anglo had a rigorous safety testing system for the grader it did not have a safety test for the parking brake in isolation.

On the day of the collision all of the air had gone out of the service brakes leaving only the untested park brake which failed.

Looking towards the cutting for the Grosvenor conveyor and where the future Grosvenor Coal Stockpiles will be located, adjacent to the Moranbah North mine. Supplied: Anglo American

Anglo argued it had done all it could and was unaware of the flaws in the park brake testing system as it had not been told about the peculiar design by the grader’s manufacturer.

But internal Anglo records indicated it did know of the unusual design feature and the necessity to develop an appropriate brake test.

“The schematic I’m satisfied is the proverbial smoking gun,” Magistrate Michael Quinn said.

But Mr Quinn also said he could not be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that it was the grader and not another vehicle which hit and killed Mr Hardwick in the drift.

The court heard another large industrial vehicle had been in the drift around the time of Mr Hardwick’s death.

Magistrate Quinn found the company not guilty of causing the 47-year-old’s death.

Due to Anglo’s failure to develop an appropriate test for the grader’s park brake he found the company guilty in relation to causing bodily harm to the three miners whose vehicle was hit by the grader.

The matter was adjourned for sentence at a later date.

Originally published as Anglo Coal found not guilty over 2019 death of Bradley Hardwick in Central Queensland mine