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View Full Version : Aussie Line Worker Killed during storm repairs



CPOPE
04-04-2008, 04:08 AM
Grisly end for electrocuted power worker
April 03, 2008 02:17pm

THE body of a power worker electrocuted while making repairs following strong winds dangled high above the ground for 90 minutes this afternoon.

Victorian emergency workers had to wait for the local power authority to switch off the current at the scene in Mornington to allow the man's body to be retrieved.

Police said initial investigations indicated the power company worker was electrocuted while making repairs to a power pole and line at Beleura Hill about 12:20pm (AEDT).

A passer-by witnessed the incident and flagged down a police vehicle.

The 38-year-old Somerville man's body was retrieved just before 2pm.

A Country Fire Authority rescue crew used extender ladders to help get the man down from the power pole.

Metropolitan Ambulance Service spokesman Paul Bentley said the man was pronounced dead after his body was retrieved from the powerlines.

"We had to wait for the power company to switch off the power before a Country Fire Authority crew were able to retrieve his body," Mr Bentley said.

A spokeswoman for power supplier Alinta said the company would issue a statement later today about the death of a company employee.

WorkSafe spokesman Michael Birt said inspectors were on the scene.

Energy Safe Victoria spokesman David Guthrie-Jones said the agency would provide technical assistance to WorkSafe.

"Two senior investigators from Energy Safe Victoria are on site and a full report will be provided to all the relevant authorities as well as the coroner," Mr Guthrie-Jones said.

"Obviously this is a very tragic accident."

Mr Birt said the man's death was worrying, coming the day after a worker was killed when steel girders and scaffolding collapsed on a building site in Melbourne on Wednesday morning.

"Two (workplace) deaths in two days is too many," he said.

WorkSafe was investigating whether the building worker's death was related to yesterday's high winds.

- with Herald Sun, AAP

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23477302-2,00.html?from=public_rss

australiantroubleman
04-05-2008, 07:43 AM
Reading the press report makes me wonder why the guys body had to be removed by country fire personel , where where other employees from Alinta?

He must have been working on his own if the press release is correct , goes to show you if you work alone you must not take risks even in storm conditions.

BillyMac
04-21-2008, 04:16 PM
I heard it was a one man crew job, That's coming a long way down the grape vine though. Yeah agree where is his SO (saftey observer). After this it is GREAT:eek: to hear that in our next EBA they want to offer us more money/night to do one man callouts (A/H) yeah right!

Squizzy
04-22-2008, 09:32 AM
My understanding is that he was on his own and working alone is going to be outlawed as a result. As for the 90 minutes that is disgraceful even with massive storm damage it doesn't take 90 minutes to get the power off to get a brother off the line reguardless of wheather he is or isn't still with us.I know all the guys out West are disgusted and the news of it went right through all the companies the same day I got 3 calls about it. You guys at Alinta should have a think about it as "whats going to happen if it were me?"

australiantroubleman
04-22-2008, 10:06 PM
As i have said before in other posts I ended up having to work single man after promotions trucks and $$ where offered to our assistants to work single man .

You have to look after yourself and dont take any risks ,especially in storm conditions , you have to stand on your convictions and dont let work despatchers foremen or control room staff get you do things alone that just isnt safe.

We often meet up on the job knock it over quickly and safely then head off to the next problem separately , once again if it requires assistance we call and wait makes me wonder if it really saves them much $$ at all.

The full outcome from this tragedy will have to be made public , I hope Alinta allows the full information to be made available to everyone not just safety investigators.
I would say it very well could spell the end of single man work teams in Australia or Victoria at least I know the union are pressing for it to be abolished.

BigClive
04-22-2008, 11:16 PM
I can understand the pressure put on you to do work alone if others were being bribed into doing it. You always get the "hero" who wants to prove how much better he is than anyone else and will frequently put himself in danger to do so. This is especially true of the type that are too technically challenged to understand the danger they are exposing themselves to.

Your health and safety system is closely related to the UK one, so the whole incident will be covered up as much as possible. How awkward for them that it was such a dramatic and violent accident. They can't just pass it off as "heart failure". I'm sure they'll just use the "accidental death" or "death by misadventure" one instead. The manslaughter charge is rarely applied to companies no matter how many corners they cut these days.

Did the victim have a family?

Squizzy
04-25-2008, 12:05 PM
I am pretty sure I heard a wife and two kids on the radio either way I despise that it took 90 minutes to get him down 1 way or the other. Would have told the control center to drop the feeder or its time to start throwing all the surrounding switches reguardless of getting the sack that sh!t it is not on 90 minutes is BULLSHIT!

BigClive
04-25-2008, 04:24 PM
It may have been down to the emergency crew simply not knowing what to do in such an extreme situation. There's a good chance they were afraid and may not have known the best channels to communicate with the electrical supply authority. After all, lineman fatalities are fortunately fairly rare in Oz.

Now might be a good time to start communicating with the emergency services so they know what to do next time.

australiantroubleman
05-15-2008, 12:08 AM
Still no official information on what happened , hearing a few rumours some conflicting others so I think Big Clive was right , they are hoping it will be forgotten .

australiantroubleman
07-03-2008, 02:57 AM
We finally received some official information on what caused this fatality.

I appears that the worker was attempting to disconnect a pole substation from live HV oh mains by disconnecting a live line connector during a storm , somehow he came in contact with the free end of the drop out live side tail and was electrocuted .

There is no further information ,I would imagine that the tail fell from the live line connector stick and contacted his body, possibily the drop out fuses where not opened prior to him removing the live line clamps allowing a back feed through the trf winding , but that is just my theory .

Still no details on how his body was removed from the pole officially.

The company involved is still not giving out much information .