Crocodile attack of two workers attracts WHS charge

This article has been reproduced with permission from OHS Alert, and the original version appears at www.ohsalert.com.au. 

The Department of Defence breached WHS laws by failing to prohibit workers from swimming in crocodile-inhabited waters, in the lead up to two soldiers being attacked by a 2.5-metre saltwater crocodile, a prosecutor has alleged.

The Commonwealth Director Public Prosecutions charged Defence with contravening section 32 ("Failure to comply with health and safety duty–Category 2") of the Commonwealth jurisdiction's Work Health and Safety Act 2011, following a Comcare investigation into the attack.

Defence is accused of breaching its primary duty of care in a way that exposed workers to the risk of death or serious injury.

The August 2021 incident occurred in the far north Queensland community of Portland Road, where soldiers were in the process of transporting a landing craft from Darwin to Townsville for maintenance.

Two Darwin-based Army soldiers were given permission to use a Zodiac boat to go fishing in the Portland Road area.

After anchoring the Zodiac, the men went swimming and were almost immediately attacked by the crocodile, which dragged one of them underwater and mauled him while the other soldier fought off the animal.

They eventually escaped to the boat, but both soldiers had suffered significant injuries, including bite and claw wounds.

The CDPP alleged Defence failed to provide and maintain a safe system of work or provide relevant training to workers, Comcare revealed today, in announcing the WHS charge.

Defence should have prohibited workers from entering crocodile-inhabited waters unless there was an operational or safety-related reason to do so, and implemented policies for conducting risk assessments in such circumstances, the prosecutor alleged.

Further, the employer should have a provided a detailed safety briefing about the risk of crocodile attack when entering the water, it alleged.

The section-32 charge carries a maximum penalty of $1.5 million.

The matter is listed for mention in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on 15 September 2023.