The incident, which occurred on January 4 on the longwall face, resulted in the release of carbon dioxide and a significant amount of coal, which obstructed passage across the face.

No people were injured as a result of this incident.

A prohibition notice and scene preservation notice have been issued in relation to the incident to prevent further production from the longwall.

As well as its own review of risk control measures, the mine operator has been required to engage an independent consultant to review the adequacy of the mine outburst management plan and the mine’s operating procedures, and then report to the regulator.

The incident followed a low-energy gas outburst on the longwall at the mine on December 24 where there was little evidence of ejected material from the face.

At that time, the regulator issued a prohibition notice and required a risk assessment, review of the outburst management plan and implementation of any additional control measures identified.

“A preliminary assessment has found that the measures helped avoid worker injury or death during the most recent incident,” the regulator said.

“The focus of the regulator’s current investigation will be on how to eliminate or minimise the risks associated with similar gas outbursts and what preventative controls are available.

“The regulator believes it is important that government and industry work together to learn lessons from this incident. The regulator believes that collaborating with industry to quickly identify contributing factors is a positive and proactive approach to help better manage risks to health and safety.”

The regulator’s preliminary assessment of the incident did not identify any material breaches of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011.

The regulator has no intention of conducting any further investigation into any potential non-compliance issues or taking any criminal enforcement action.

The focus of ongoing inquiries is to identify the causes of the event.

“While the NSW Resources Regulator does not intend to conduct an investigation into non-compliance issues at this time, or to conduct any criminal enforcement proceedings, the regulator will take action if it is in the public interest,” it said.

 

“For example, in this case, if the incident was a result of reckless conduct and created significant risk of death or serious injury.”