Workers Rescued From Red Mud Dam

The importance of having emergency management plans has been covered by the Aluminium Plant Safety Blog in the past. Here is a story where an effective emergency management plan saved two lives.

A machine used to flatten off a red mud dam at an aluminium company's site in Australia rolled over in the dam early during the week of September 29, 2013. 

There was a man and a woman about the machine, known as amphibious amphirol, one aluminium company employee and the other a contractor. They both ended up in the dam.

Amphibous amphirol, used to flatten the red mud dam

A helicopter was used  to lower clean clothing and cleaning equipment to the people, who had managed to get back on board the machine. 

Emergency services personnel were called to the site and a boat, which is moored in the dam as part of the company's emergency management plan, was used to the two off the machine, one at a time.

 Neither person was injured in the incident, but there were treated by local ambulance personnel before being taken to the site's medical center for further observation. 

The aluminium company said an investigation into the incident would be carried out. 

The dam contains waste from the process of making alumina.

As part of the process, caustic soda and alumina solution passes into rows of thickener tanks, where solid impurities sink to the bottom as a fine, red mud.

The impurities are washed several times with water and disposed of in tailings dams.

Emergency management plans are sometimes referred as emergency action plans. At minimum the plans should include the following:

1. Procedures for emergency evacuation, including type of evacuation and exit route assignments;
2. Procedures to be followed by employees who remain to operate critical plant operations before they evacuate;
3. Procedures to account for all employees after evacuation;
4. Procedures to be followed by employees performing rescue or medical duties;
5. An employer must have and maintain an employee alarm system;
6. An employer must train the employees on safely evacuating the facility
7. The employer must review the emergency action plan with each employee.

It is important to review the emergency action plan on a scheduled basis. 

The Occupational Safety & Health Administration has further information on developing Emergency Action Plans. It can be viewed here.

The Health & Safety Executive (UK) information on Emergency Action Plans can be viewed here.