Ransberg Pty Ltd fined $580,000 four years after employee’s leg amputated after being crushed by 2000kg gate

A Perth concrete manufacturing company has been fined $580,000 more than four years after one its employees — who did not receive any formal training — had his leg amputated after a 2000kg gate fell on him. Ransberg Pty Ltd, which now trades as WA Premix, pleaded guilty to failing to provide and maintain a safe workplace and causing serious harm to a worker at Joondalup Magistrates Court last week. The court was told the employee was emptying a large waste pit in December 2020 when the gate — weighing about two tonnes — came crashing down. The waste pits, which are about five metres tall, are normally held in place by four wedge pins and a secure lifting chain. But on the morning of the incident, the man knocked out three pins before realising he could not find the chain. Despite this, he returned to the gate and knocked out the remaining pin, causing the gate to come tumbling forward, smashing him in the chest and crushing his left leg. The man suffered multiple open fractures and other serious injuries which resulted in his left leg being amputated below the knee. The court was told Ransberg owned other waste pit gates — located at other batching plants — which were structurally supported by a steel “c channel”. WorkSafe commissioner Sally North said the incident could have been avoided if there had been a comprehensive risk assessment. She said the employee had not received any formal training in emptying the waste bins. “Any risk assessment undertaken at this plant did not include the risk of the gate falling onto a worker, and also the risks present when just one worker performed this task,” Ms North said on Friday. “At the time of this incident, there was no supporting mechanism in place to prevent the gate from falling if it wasn’t attached to the lifting chains.” She said safety measures had been added, including forklift lifting pockets which were added to the gates. “After the incident two simple supporting blocks were welded to the front of the gate to hold it in place when the pins are removed,” she said. “In addition, a more comprehensive safe work procedure was created which requires that two people complete the task of emptying the waste pits. “The injured worker, along with the rest of the workers at the plant, had not received any formal training in emptying the waste bins. “All relevant personnel have now undergone training in the relevant safe work practices. “If these actions had been taken sooner, the injured worker would have been spared the life-changing injury he suffered. “This case is a reminder of the crucial importance of assessing every risk in a workplace in consultation with workers and putting into place safe work procedures that workers are trained in and are using.”