Kimberley Quarry Prosecution: A Costly Reminder on Fall Risks and Incident Response

In June 2025, Kimberley Quarry Pty Ltd was convicted and fined a total of $167,000 plus costs after a worker fell more than three metres from a mobile screening machine at its Geraldton site. The case highlights two critical failures—managing fall risks and preserving an incident site—and serves as a stark warning to all businesses.

What Happened

On June 25, 2022, workers were changing heavy wire panels (weighing 15–30 kg each) on a Terex 984 Mobile Screening Machine. The task required accessing the top deck, approximately 3.18 metres high, but no edge protection or fall restraint was in place.

Two workers climbed onto the top of the machine and began throwing panels to the ground below. As one panel was thrown, its wire hooks caught a worker’s jumper, dragging him off the edge.

The worker sustained serious injuries, including a fractured vertebra, ligament damage, and internal bleeding, requiring airlifting to Perth for treatment.

Compounding the breach, after the injured worker was taken to the hospital, the site supervisor instructed others to continue the work, contravening legal requirements to preserve the site of a notifiable incident.

The Charges and Penalties

• Offence 1 – Failure to ensure health and safety of workers (s.19(1), s.32(1) WHS Act 2020)

  • Fine: $160,000

• Offence 2 – Failure to preserve the incident site (s.39(1) WHS Act 2020)

  • Fine: $7,000

• Costs: $5,026

Kimberley Quarry pleaded guilty in the Fremantle Magistrates Court.

Key Learnings for Businesses

1. Fall from Height Remains a Leading Risk

• The work was performed at a height exceeding 3 metres without edge protection, fall restraint, or engineered access platforms.

• Businesses must assume workers will take the “easiest path” unless procedures and controls make safer options the only option.

• Review all tasks above two metres and ensure compliance with the hierarchy of controls—elimination, engineering, and fall arrest systems.

2. Safe Work Procedures Must Address Real Hazards

• The quarry had a Safe Work Procedure (SWP) for screen changes, but it did not address fall risks.

• It referenced the use of a crane, but gave no details on positioning, methods, or prohibited practices.

• A written procedure is only effective if it identifies all foreseeable hazards and sets out practical, enforceable controls.

3. Supervisory Oversight is Critical

• The incident occurred on a weekend with limited supervision.

• Workers resorted to unsafe practices (climbing onto machinery, throwing panels).

• Supervisors must set clear expectations, enforce procedures, and ensure high-risk work is not left to inexperienced or unsupervised crews.

4. Preserve the Site After Notifiable Incidents

• Once a serious incident occurs, the law requires the site to remain undisturbed until a regulator attends (unless to save life or make safe).

• Instructing workers to continue with the screen change breached this duty and led to the second conviction.

• All managers and supervisors must be trained in incident response obligations—not just safety procedures.

5. Learn and Improve—Before the Regulator Forces It

• Only after the incident did the quarry update its SWP to prohibit climbing onto the machine and mandate the use of catwalks or platforms.

• A proactive review of procedures, consultation with workers, and alignment with industry best practices could have prevented this entirely.

Final Word

This case is a reminder that:

• Falls from height remain one of the leading causes of death in Australian workplaces.

• Written procedures without adequate controls are not worth the paper they’re written on.

• Preserving incident sites is a non-negotiable legal duty.

For businesses, the Kimberley Quarry prosecution underscores the importance of conducting rigorous risk assessments, implementing enforceable safe systems of work, maintaining intense supervision, and providing proper training on legal obligations.

The cost of getting it wrong is far more than financial—it’s measured in lives changed forever.