Workers at Byerwen coal mine have been left traumatised following a second worker fatality in less than three weeks.
Queensland District President Mitch Hughes said workers felt a horrible sense of déjà vu when they received the news.
“Workers have not even had a chance to properly process the fatality of Chris Schloss who they lost less than three weeks ago.
“When they found out another one of their workmates died at the mine, it was earth shattering. MEU members we have spoken to this afternoon just can’t comprehend it.
The fatality occurred when a 793 truck ran over a light vehicle at around 1:00pm today.
Paramedics and emergency services attended the site but were unable to revive the worker.
Mr Hughes said that today’s events showed that QCoal and MacMahon cannot be trusted to operate safely.
“The MEU believes that the only reasonable course of action is for QCoal to cease operations immediately.
“As for QCoal’s future, unless they can demonstrate that they can operate safely, we believe that their license for the mining lease should be removed.”
Mr Hughes said that in the immediate term QCoal should organise travel home for all workers, and provide them with whatever support they require, along with a commitment to paying workers as normal.
The MEU extends our deepest condolences to the friends and family of those involved.