A dump truck at an open cut mine in New South Wales has dropped at least a metre into the ground due to a dump wall failure.
The accident occurred as the truck operator was tipping a load.
The New South Wales Resources Regulator pointed out that dumps failure typically occurred during and post wet weather events.
Mine operators are advised to have a safe system to inspect dumps, taking into account weather effects, ground water and factors that affect dump wall stability.
The regulator advised inspections to increase during wet weather, as well as before restarting work near walls, dumps and geotechnical faults.
“Avoid working near, or parking vehicles and equipment under, or on the edge of high-walls and low-walls during and post wet weather events,” the regulator stated in a safety bulletin.
“Where possible, use drones to inspect wall and dump conditions, particularly post wet weather events for detection of failures and the pooling of water.”
Wall failures led to two fatalities in Queensland and the Northern Territory from late 2018 to early 2020, during which period a number of misses have been reported in New South Wales, according to the Western Australian Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety.