Lyne said fire brigades from adjacent communities as well as the mine personnel attended the scene and were able to contain the fire.
He said the mine has the capacity to produce 5.5 million tonnes of coal a year, the majority of which is exported.
Mine operators should review any similar installations at their mines and determine the following matters as part of their emergency response planning at the mine:
- Resources required to fight a fire on an elevated belt conveyor gantry;
- How to recover persons safely should they be located on the top side of a fire in an elevated conveyor gantry (such as whilst maintaining the head roller of the conveyor); and
- Availability and effectiveness of early fire warning monitoring.
