Date of incident: January 2022
Notice of incident number: 2022194940003
Employers: Electrical firms (2)

Incident summary

An independent worker hired by a prime contractor was conducting a load test on newly installed electrical cables in an electrical vault room. The worker was working alone in the room. During the testing, the worker made contact with a live 12.5 kV cable. The worker received an electric shock. The incident triggered a power outage in the workplace, which prompted the worker’s colleagues to go to the electrical vault room, where they found the worker seriously injured.

Investigation conclusions

Cause

• Worker removed cabinet panel on energized terminal and sustained electric shock. The newly installed cables the worker was testing had been de-energized. The cable he made contact with was on another power feed that was not de-energized. Just prior to receiving the electric shock, the worker had unbolted and removed a panel on the rear of a switchgear cabinet near the work zone. Removing this panel exposed two live 12.5 kV terminals. The investigation was not able to determine why the worker removed the panel. The prime contractor for the work was found to have fulfilled all its occupational health and safety responsibilities.

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