Court Summary - at a glance

Date of offence:
17/08/2017
 
Plea:
Guilty
 
Decision:
Convicted
 
Final decision date:
 
Fine imposed:
$21,000

Safety lessons learned:

The defendant should have regularly obtained geotechnical information about the Puke Coal opencast mine as extraction progressed and had that information analysed by a competent person (such as a geotechnical engineer) to ensure the suitability of the slope design at the mine in relation to ground instability.

Defendant name:
Puke Coal Limited
 
Industry:
Mining
 
Date of offence:
17/08/2017
 
Facts in brief:
On 17 August 2017, a worker was operating a Hyundai 32-tonne excavator/ digger at the coal face ground level excavating materials. At approximately 1.50pm that day a slip event occurred approximately 50 metres from where the worker was working. Some of the rubble, including a large boulder, struck the worker’s excavator trapping him in the excavator cab. The worker sustained a broken neck, fractured skull and a tear to his frontal lobe. He also suffered a C2 fracture of his spine. The WorkSafe investigation established the Defendant had failed to comply with its duty to ensure the safety of its workers. Expert evidence could not clearly show what caused the slip event and so connect the injuries suffered by the worker to the Defendant's failures.
 
Offence section:
Sections 48(1) and 2(c), and 36(1)(a) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015
 
Date(s) charged:
15/08/2018

Court:
Huntly - District Court
 
Plea:
Guilty
 
Final decision date:
 
Decision:
Convicted
 
Fine imposed:
$21,000
 
Maximum fine available:
$1.5 million
 
Reparation:
$0 ordered. The Defendant company had previously made voluntary payments/contributions to the injured worker totalling around $13,400.
$5,000.00 in costs
 
Related Documents:
PDF
Sentencing notes - WorkSafe New Zealand v Puke Coal Limited (PDF 1.1 MB)
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