In a decision released by the Invercargill District Court this week, Wallace Murray Electrical Limited was fined $150,000 following the incident, which took place while the worker was replacing a switchboard in October 2017.

The worker was drilling into the switchboard at the Waikiwi pumping station in Invercargill when there was an electrical explosion which left them with burns to his hands.

WorkSafe’s investigation found while the worker was qualified and experienced with switchboards, the explosion was most likely caused when a fine chip of copper made contact with live terminals.

Head of Specialist Interventions Simon Humphries said an experienced worker has suffered from injury in the workplace because his employer didn’t ensure risks were mitigated.

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