Underground workers lucky to survive explosion at Kidston hydro project

A war of words has erupted after explosives were detonated just 30m away from underground workers at a NQ renewable energy project. See what happened.

Photos from Genex Power’s 250MW Kidston Pumped Storage Hydro Project on the site of the disused Kidston gold mine, northwest of Townsville. Picture: Supplied

An alarming incident at Kidston Pumped Storage Hydro Project where three underground workers were put in danger when explosives were detonated nearby has triggered a war of words.

Located 280km northwest of Townsville, the 250MW Kidston Pumped Storage Hydro Project was in the process of converting the disused Kidston gold mine when a dangerous incident took place on February 23.

Three underground workers were operating at 300m below ground at about 5am when they felt rumblings and heard an explosion, returning to base to discover that explosives had been set off 30m below them.

CFMEU Regional workplace health and safety coordinator Mick Robinson said the workers confirmed their cards were on the wall, vehicle numbers were logged, and “it should have been known they were still down there.”

Having not received confirmation by March 1 whether a State Department officer or investigator had set foot on the Kidston site, despite reporting the incident on February 23, Mr Robinson blasted the government’s response as “absolutely dismal”.

CFMEU Regional workplace health and safety coordinator Mick Robinson.

“It’s taken six days for the government to even notice. The site should have been shut down immediately,” Mr Robinson said.

“We’re still calling for an immediate shutdown, so there can be a full safety reset, a review of how this was allowed to happen, new protocols put in place and full safety retraining for everyone so it doesn’t happen again.”

Mr Robinson also alerted Katter’s Australian Party MP Bob Katter who notified the Federal Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations Tony Burke.

Photos from Genex Power’s 250MW Kidston Pumped Storage Hydro Project on the site of the disused Kidston gold mine, northwest of Townsville. Picture: Supplied

Due to differing jurisdictions, two of state government’s workplace health and safety regulators are responding to the incident - Resources Safety & Health Queensland (RSHQ) and Workplace Health and Safety Queensland (WHSQ).

A RSHQ spokeswoman said the RSHQ Explosives Inspectorate was notified of this incident on February 23, and were following up “so far as it relates to matters covered under the Explosives Act”.

In a follow up statement released on Monday the RSHQ spokeswoman said RSHQ inspectors were immediately in contact with the site and the blasting contractor to ensure conditions were safe for work.

“The site suspended blasting operations for two days until interim controls were in place, under the guidance of RSHQ,” she said.

“Our inspectors will travel to the site this week for further discussions.

“Initial investigations show the clearance procedure that was undertaken to ensure all workers were clear in the tunnelling operations prior to blasting, was not effective.”

Worker health and safety at the Kidston site falls under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011, which is administered by the Office of Industrial Relations.

RSHQ is examining the site’s blasting procedures and practices to ensure they comply with the Explosives Act 1999.

A WHSQ Queensland spokeswoman said they first became aware of the incident on February 26, after receiving an anonymous complaint.

“WHSQ immediately commenced enquiries, including a formal referral to RHSQ as the responsible entity,” she said.

“RHSQ confirmed it had been notified of the incident and had commenced taking action in response to the matter. As the complaint was made anonymously, WHSQ were unable to advise them of the outcome.”

Genex Power chief executive officer James Harding with, Resources Minister Scott Stewart, Energy, Renewables and Hydrogen Minister Mick de Brenni and Etheridge Mayor Barry Hughes and Kidston pumped hydro workers celebrate the latest milestone of the project. Picture: Peter Carruthers

She acknowledged stakeholder concerns with WHSQ about the psychosocial response.

“Businesses have a legal requirement to manage any concerns of this nature and, if not managed appropriately, WHSQ will take action as necessary,” she said.

A Genex spokeswoman said they notified the relevant regulatory authorities as soon as they became aware of the incident on February 23.

“We take the safety of all our employees and contractors extremely seriously. The incident is under investigation, during which time we have been working closely with our contracting partners and the regulatory authorities,” she said.

“We cannot comment further while the investigation is ongoing.”

The Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations was approached for comment.

Originally published as Underground workers lucky to survive explosion at Kidston hydro project