Young subcontractor killed by turbine blade on western Victorian wind farm

Credit: By Allanah Sciberras, Eleanor Wilson · Nov 11, 2024 · 9news.com.au ~~

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A worker killed when he was crushed by a wind turbine this morning has been identified as a young subcontractor from regional Victoria, 36-year-old Jess Patience.

Emergency services were called to the Golden P23 wordslains Wind Farm on Bells Road in Rokewood around 8am.

It’s understood the turbine blade was being prepared for installation while still at ground level, when it fell and crushed the man, aged in his 30s.

First responders attempted to revive him, but he died at the scene.

Danish renewable energy giant Vestas, the turbine supplier, confirmed the incident and said the site would be closed.

“Vestas is devastated for the worker’s family and the entire team building the wind farm and will be doing everything it can to support them during this terrible time,” Vestas Australia boss Danny Nielson said.

“The blade is stored underground and there is some prep work that needs to be done … and it’s in that work stream that the accident has happened.

“Safety is our number one priority so any incidents, any accidents, is for us one too many.”

“This is a heartbreaking tragedy and our thoughts are with the family of the worker as well as their workmates,” Pearson said.

The Australian Workers’ Union (AWU) said it recently raised safety concerns with the company.

“This devastating loss could have been prevented,” Victoria State Secretary Ronnie Hayden said.

“Just two weeks ago, union delegates from three different unions met with Vestas management to raise serious safety concerns, telling them it was only dumb luck that nobody had been killed on site yet.”

The AWU said it “consistently raised alarms about the mounting pressure on workers due to significant project delays”.

The union also claimed Vestas made the move to engage non-unionised contractors for some of the most dangerous work on site.

“This is yet another worker killed on a Victorian worksite that demands answers,” Hayden said.

“We need more than just investigations and reports, we need immediate action on site safety and stronger enforcement of regulations.”

“This is not just another statistic, this is a worker who went to work and never came home.”

Aerial images of the scene show a large area cordoned off with police tape.

Traumatised staff were forced to stay next to the scene, according to the union, while drug tests were completed.

Work had been underway to complete the first stage of the wind farm, which will be the largest wind farm in the southern hemisphere once fully operational.

Rokewood is located near Geelong, about 133 kilometres west of Melbourne.

Source: By Allanah Sciberras, Eleanor Wilson · Nov 11, 2024 · 9news.com.au

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