Detailed in a recent safety alert by the state’s Department of Natural Resources and Mines, the crime took place after shot-firers left one rock wall area they had charged to prepare another 250m away.
It took them two hours to discover the missing explosives from the first area, with their goal being to blast between two passages in an underground tunnel.
“On investigation, they found that the electronic detonators and high explosives were removed from two blast holes,” DONR said.
“The site had active and robust perimeter security controls in operation. However, people who were not security cleared and not authorised to access explosives were legitimately allowed to be in the general area near the explosives.
“A temporary physical barrier does not prevent access to explosives and does not send an alert when the exclusion zone is breached.”
Seven recommendations, mainly security-related, were made to the wider industry due to this incident.
Some police believe that stolen mining explosives were used for the fatal blasts of Sydney’s Family Court Murders during the 1980s.
