❓ A WA parliamentary question on notice addresses a fire incident involving a Caterpillar 775 dump truck at the Kanowna Belle mine, inquiring about the details of the incident, potential causes, and the Department of Mines and Petroleum's (DMP) response and preventative measures.
AnsweredQoN 2425Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to the Kanowna Belle Operations owned and operated by Barrick, and ask -
(1) Has it been reported to the Department of Mines and Petroleum (DMP), and is it correct that ,on or around 29 April 2010, a Caterpillar 775 dump truck caught fire underground near the portal of the above mentioned mine, causing all employees to attend refuge chambers within the mine, before being evacuated through another portal of that mine?
(2) If no to (1), what is correct?
(3) If yes to (1), has it been reported to the DMP, and is it correct that, the operator of this truck, was being engulfed in smoke and becoming quite fearful, expressing strong concerns over the communications system about the situation as the fire suppression had been activated and she couldn’t get the fire extinguisher off the machine to activate it?
(4) If no to (3), what is correct?
(5) Has it been reported to the DMP, and is it correct that, a blown ‘O’ ring inside a loose fitting caused diesel to be sprayed onto the exhaust of the truck referred to in (1), causing the fire?
(6) Is it correct that within the last four years, there was a fire on another Caterpillar 775 truck underground at the same mine, that was also caused by a blown ‘O’ ring inside a loose fitting that caused diesel to spray onto the exhaust?
(7) What has the DMP done to mitigate repeats of this type of incident?
(8) Have any sections of the
Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1995 and Regulations 1994
been breached in these incidents referred to in (1) and (3)?
(1) Has it been reported to the Department of Mines and Petroleum (DMP), and is it correct that ,on or around 29 April 2010, a Caterpillar 775 dump truck caught fire underground near the portal of the above mentioned mine, causing all employees to attend refuge chambers within the mine, before being evacuated through another portal of that mine?
(2) If no to (1), what is correct?
(3) If yes to (1), has it been reported to the DMP, and is it correct that, the operator of this truck, was being engulfed in smoke and becoming quite fearful, expressing strong concerns over the communications system about the situation as the fire suppression had been activated and she couldn’t get the fire extinguisher off the machine to activate it?
(4) If no to (3), what is correct?
(5) Has it been reported to the DMP, and is it correct that, a blown ‘O’ ring inside a loose fitting caused diesel to be sprayed onto the exhaust of the truck referred to in (1), causing the fire?
(6) Is it correct that within the last four years, there was a fire on another Caterpillar 775 truck underground at the same mine, that was also caused by a blown ‘O’ ring inside a loose fitting that caused diesel to spray onto the exhaust?
(7) What has the DMP done to mitigate repeats of this type of incident?
(8) Have any sections of the
Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1995 and Regulations 1994
been breached in these incidents referred to in (1) and (3)?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
17 June 2010
Responded by
Minister for Mines and Petroleum
Response time
29 days
Yes, this incident did occur on 29 April 2010 at about 6.05pm.
Not applicable
No
The company reported that communications were very effective and that all personnel evacuated the work areas on hearing the emergency radio call. The truck's fire suppression system was activated and the fire was partially extinguished. The operator then assisted with a hand held unit.
The company has indicated that it suspects that a fuel leak caused diesel to spray onto the turbo charger unit causing the ignition and resultant fire. he incident is currently being investigated and the specific cause of the suspected leak is yet to be determined.
Departmental records indicate that none of the investigation reports relating to Caterpillar 775 trucks over the past 4 years (2007-2010) have made reference to failed 'O' rings.
The Department investigates fires on vehicles where the incident is deemed serious enough to warrant it. As there has been no issues identified in regards to causation due to the failure of 'O' rings, no specific actions have been undertaken in regard to this item of equipment.
No
Notice: This document is created or edited using unregistered or evaluation copy of rtLib valid for testing or development purposes only. To use it for productive or any other purposes please register it. You may purchase the license on
http://www.rtlib.com
Not applicable
No
The company reported that communications were very effective and that all personnel evacuated the work areas on hearing the emergency radio call. The truck's fire suppression system was activated and the fire was partially extinguished. The operator then assisted with a hand held unit.
The company has indicated that it suspects that a fuel leak caused diesel to spray onto the turbo charger unit causing the ignition and resultant fire. he incident is currently being investigated and the specific cause of the suspected leak is yet to be determined.
Departmental records indicate that none of the investigation reports relating to Caterpillar 775 trucks over the past 4 years (2007-2010) have made reference to failed 'O' rings.
The Department investigates fires on vehicles where the incident is deemed serious enough to warrant it. As there has been no issues identified in regards to causation due to the failure of 'O' rings, no specific actions have been undertaken in regard to this item of equipment.
No
Notice: This document is created or edited using unregistered or evaluation copy of rtLib valid for testing or development purposes only. To use it for productive or any other purposes please register it. You may purchase the license on
http://www.rtlib.com
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.