The Queensland Mines Inspectorate has released a safety alert warning operators of the risks with man baskets falling from tele-handlers or integrated tool carrier type machines.
According to the Mines Inspectorate, there have been a number of incidents in which man baskets have detached and fallen from machines.
Two most recent examples were in underground mines.
The first was a fatality at a metalliferous mine and the second, a high potential incident involving two persons working from a man basket.
The Inspectorate said that the common factor in these incidents was that the machines were fitted with a quick hitch type mechanism which allows for the interchange of components.
These incidents occurred when the manually operated quick hitch mechanisms were not locked in place. The Inspectorate advises that mines: examine the use of man baskets to determine how each is attached to the host machine; review the procedures that control attaching the man basket and ensuring positive locking; and review training materials to ensure that, when lifting personnel, security of the locking mechanism is treated as a critical task.