A safety training organisation was recently fined $121,000 for a safety breach that injured six people in the Northern Territory.
In the Darwin Magistrate’s Court, the WA-based Industrial Foundation for Accident Prevention (IFAP) was fined following an explosion that occurred at the company’s Berrimah training facility in July 2009.
Four trainees and two trainers were injured in the explosion that occurred during a simulated marine fire emergency, while one of the trainers received serious burns to the face and neck.
IFAP had pleaded guilty to a charge of breaching Section 55(1) of the Workplace Health and Safety Act.
Magistrate Tania Fong-Lim commended the company on its early guilty plea and said this had led to a substantial discount in the fine, the maximum of which is $650,000 under the Act.
A second company, Fire Safety Training and Management Services, has also been charged with offences in relation to the incident and will appear in court at a later date.