THE QUEENSLAND Department of Mines and Energy has issued a safety alert on vehicle collisions on mine sites.
According to the alert, the incident occurred at a surface mine on the first nightshift, at 4.30am.
An operator of a loaded rear dump truck fell asleep at the wheel on entering a left hand bend, crossed the lanes and collided with an approaching empty rear dump truck.
The operator of the empty truck saw what was happening, tried to avoid the collision, and also attempted communication on the 2-way radio without success. There were no injuries.
The incident is being investigated, but fatigue has been identified as a factor. The Department of Mines and Energy said there were no injuries because both trucks were left hand drive, both were heavy class vehicles, and the empty truck did not roll.
In April 2008, the Department of Mines and Energy issued Safety Alert 194, drawing attention to a probable head on collision between two rear dump trucks, when a loaded truck lost control but was stopped by a substantial centre berm dividing the haul road.
Light and heavy vehicles are subject to a variety of hazards, including wet roads, micro sleeps, brake faults, speed, inexperience and various distractions to the driver.
Controls include hard barriers, proximity detection devices, fatigue detection devices, etc.
A mine’s risk management process must drive regular review of operational procedures to identify ways to continuously improve safety, such as the availability of other control options, new technology or innovations.