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Prosecution Details

Defendant CSR Limited
Trading Name Not applicable
Section 19(1), 19(6) and 19(7)
Regulation Not applicable
Offence Date Wednesday, 27 November 1996
Description of Breach(es)

Being an employer, failed as far as was practicable to provide and maintain a working environment in which its employees were not exposed to hazards and in particular failed to provide a safe system of work such that, so far as was practicable, its employees were not exposed to hazards and failed to provide such instruction to its employees as was necessary to enable them to perform their work in such a manner that they were not exposed to hazards and by that failure caused serious harm to an employee.

Background Details

The defendant operates a sugar mill 12kms north of the Kununurra town site. The mill is fully automated from a central control room. Sugar cane is delivered to the mill in 30cm long billets where it is tipped into a feed conveyor, delivered to a high speed hammer mill for shredding, then crushed between heavy rollers to extract sugar juice.

On 27 November 1996 the process supervisor at the mill was monitoring the quality of sugar throughout the mill. At some stage he decided that some of the sugar passing from the centrifuge to the dryer was not sufficiently pure and decided to dump it. He opened the dump hatch, however the revolving conveyer continued to operate as designed. There was a coating of sugar blocking the opening once the hatch had been opened. The supervisor put his foot through a space in the guard rail adjacent to the dump hatch as seen in the photograph and kicked the sugar coating. His foot went straight through the coating and was grabbed by the screw conveyer. The supervisor lost about a third of his foot.

The defendant initially pleaded not guilty when the penalty provision being used was section 19(7) - maximum $200,000 penalty. Later the prosecution changed the penalty provision to section 19(6) and the defendant entered a plea of guilty with a submission in mitigation.

The matter was heard before His Worship Mr Thoboven SM on 28 September 2000.




Lead Image
Outcome Summary

convicted

Conviction Date 28 Sep 2000
Court Kununurra Court of Petty Sessions
Fine $10,000
Costs $1,500
Charge Number 1517/97