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Worker seriously injured in fall

Earlier this year, a young worker suffered serious injuries when they fell from a retaining wall at a construction site.

Early investigations indicate the worker was close to the retaining wall and handing materials from the ground level to another worker located on the first level. For reasons yet to be established, the young worker fell over two metres onto the ground below the retaining wall.

Investigations are continuing.

Safety issues

This incident highlights the falls risks associated with working near embankments. Multi-storey building construction sites present falls from height risks for workers and others.

These include the following:

  • near an opening where they could fall through
  • near live edges, where a person could fall over
  • on or near a fragile surface where they could fall through
  • on or near a slippery, sloping, or unstable surface
  • embankments and retaining walls
  • falling through edge protection when it fails
  • any place from where a person could fall and is likely to be injured.

Ways to manage health and safety

Effective risk management starts with a commitment to health and safety from those who manage the business. If an incident occurs, you will need to show the regulator that you have used an effective risk management process. This responsibility is covered by your primary duty of care in the Work Health and Safety Act 2011.

Use the hierarchy of controls to help decide how to eliminate and reduce risks in your place of work. The hierarchy of controls ranks types of control methods from the highest level of protection and reliability to the lowest. It is a step-by-step approach to eliminating or reducing risks. You must work through the hierarchy of controls when managing risks, with the aim of eliminating the hazard, which is the most effective control.

Possible control measures to prevent similar incidents

The Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 requires a PCBU to eliminate the risk of falls. Where it is not possible to do so, the PCBU must minimise the risk in accordance with section 79. Risk can be minimised by providing and maintaining a safe system of work.

This can look like:

  • providing a fall prevention device
  • if it is not reasonably practicable to provide a fall prevention device, providing a work positioning system
  • if the above is not reasonably practicable, providing a fall arrest system, such as:
    • a secure fence
    • edge protection
    • working platforms
    • covers.

When selecting a control method, the control or system itself must comply with specific requirements. Section 306 of the WHS Regulation sets out specific requirements for edge protection when using as a control measure. If the work meets the definition of high-risk construction work (e.g. construction work that involves a risk of a person falling more than two metres) then a safe work method statement must be prepared.

You must consider various control options and choose the control that most effectively eliminates or minimises the risk in the circumstances. This may involve a single control measure or a combination of different controls that provide the highest level of protection.

These can include the following:

Work on a solid construction

Working on a solid construction provides an environment where the likelihood of a fall may be minimised.

Solid construction means an area:

  • with a surface that is structurally capable of supporting workers, materials and any other loads applied to it
  • provided with barriers around its perimeter and around any openings from or through which a person could fall
  • with an even and readily negotiable surface and gradient
  • with a safe means of entry and exit
  • consider environmental factors such as:
    • ensure floor / ground areas and access ways are clean, level, well-lit and well maintained
    • ensure construction materials, power leads, tools and equipment are positioned and secured to avoid creating tripping hazards.

Perimeter guardrails

Guardrails may be used to provide effective fall prevention:

  • at the edges of rooves
  • at the edges of mezzanine floors, walkways, stairways, ramps, and landings
  • around openings in floor and roof structures
  • at the edges of shafts, pits, and other excavations.

All guardrail systems should be designed to a recognised technical design standard. Australian Standards apply to the design of edge protection systems. Sometimes edge protection is constructed from timber that is typically used in house construction, such as pine studs. Caution needs to be used in this situation as the timber may not have adequate strength unless it is doubled up and/or used in its strongest orientation.

Timber guardrail systems should only be erected in accordance with the written instructions of a suitably qualified professional engineer or in compliance with a recognised industry standard such as the Safe Work Australia National Code of Practice for the Prevention of Falls in Housing Construction.

The required load resistance will depend on the momentum of a falling person. For example, the momentum of a person falling from a pitched roof will increase as the pitch ( the angle of the roof) increases. It must be tested to confirm that the handrail can withstand the force of a person falling against it.

Fall Restraint

Fall arrest systems are the least preferred risk control measure because they do not prevent a fall occurring but arrest the fall once it has occurred. This relies on the worker being able to attach to the anchorage point prior to getting into a position where the worker could fall. The worker can still be injured, even if the fall arrest system is set up correctly (and is rated to go over an edge) and the worker's fall is arrested before they hit the ground or another obstruction.

After the fall, the worker must be rescued both promptly and safely. Fall arrest systems are primarily personal protective equipment (PPE) but also rely on engineering controls (anchorage point strength, harness and lanyard design) and administrative controls (making sure the lanyard is connected and not too long).

Travel restraint systems are designed to prevent a fall from an edge by physically restricting how close a worker can get to the edge. A travel restraint system is a combination of an engineering control (system design), administrative control and PPE (tethering lines and harness).

A travel restraint system used as a control measure must:

  • be installed by a competent person; and
  • have an anchorage point with a capacity to withstand any load that could be exerted on it in the normal operation of the system, to restrain any person who may reasonably be expected to use the system.

You must not use administrative controls exclusively to minimise the risk of falls unless it is not reasonably practicable to use a higher order control. Note: Any administrative control measures rely on human behaviour and supervision, and used on their own, tend to be least effective in minimising risks. The control measures you put in place should be monitored and reviewed regularly to make sure they work as planned.

Safe System of Work

Develop a safe system of work for managing the risk of falling through openings or off edges.

This could include:

  • planning the site layout:
    • preparing firm, level surfaces below work areas for the support of plant and equipment like EWPs or mobile scaffolds
    • the site and condition of access roads to enable plant to place material in and pick it up from the most favourable positions, reducing the need for manual handling at height
    • the safe access to and exit from work areas and amenities including the provision and placement of stairways, ladders, catwalks, guardrails, and barriers
    • the need for a direct and unobstructed means of escape and rescue in the event of an emergency.
  • developing safe work procedures that describe the task, identify the hazards and document how the task is to be performed to minimise any risks associated with working near holes, penetrations, openings and edges
  • providing information (including exact locations of penetrations and openings or exposed edges), training, instruction and supervision to people who work near holes, penetrations, and exposed edges
  • establishing exclusion zones and installing warning signs
  • organising and sequencing of work tasks
  • where more than one business has responsibility for the same health and safety matters, duty holders should exchange information to find out who is doing what and work together in a cooperative and coordinated way, so risks are eliminated or minimised (either because they are involved in the same activities or share the same workplace)
  • scheduling regular inspections of barrier/edge protection to ensure that the risk controls remain safely secured in place and in good condition
  • allocating specific time to perform inspections of the workplace, conducting pre-start meetings and toolbox talks while ensuring workers have sufficient time to perform any necessary safety checks prior to commencing work (such as pre-start checks of equipment).

Note: Any administrative control measures and PPE rely on human behaviour and supervision, and used on their own, tend to be least effective in minimising risks.

The control measures you put in place should be reviewed regularly to make sure they work as planned.

More Information

If this information has caused distress, there are services to help:

  • Lifeline – 24/7 crisis support service, including phone, texting and chat services.
  • Beyond Blue – information and support for anxiety, depression and suicide prevention for everyone in Australia.
  • Black Dog Institute – research and resources on mental health in the workplace.
  • SANE – helpline service, as well as resources on mental health.

Have you been affected by a workplace fatality, illness or serious injury?

For advice and support, visit our Facebook page or email ohs.coronialliaison@oir.qld.gov.au.

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Last updated 5 September 2025