10th anniversary of explosion at Longford Gas Plant – 25 September 2008

02 October 2008

Tomorrow is the 10^th anniversary of the explosion at the gas plant at Longford.  The accident occurred on 25 September 1998, killing two workers and injuring another eight.

The accident shut down gas supplies to Victoria for two weeks, affecting 1.3 million households and more than 89,000 businesses, and costing hundreds of millions of dollars.

WorkSafe prosecuted Esso Australia Pty Ltd, who were convicted and fined $2 million on 30 July 2001.  This remains the biggest single OHS fine in Victorian history.

WorkSafe Victoria established a Major Hazards Unit in 1999, and introduced new Regulations for Hazard Facilities in 2000. These regulations required all Major Hazard Facility operators to provide a ‘Safety Case’ demonstrating how they would prevent a major incident from occurring at their facilities.  Victoria’s safety case regime was the first in the world to require major hazard facilities to be licensed.

A rigorous process applies to all applications for a licence, and the facilities are visited regularly by WorkSafe Inspectors.

WorkSafe’s Executive Director of Health and Safety, John Merritt, said that the anniversary is an important reminder of how essential safety in the workplace is: “I think it’s important that we remember two workers lost their lives and another eight were injured in this accident.  Victoria’s Major Hazard Facilities are now regulated at the highest levels in Australia, if not the world, but we must always remain vigilant and ensure the safety of workers and the public is paramount