An air ambulance flew a Colac man to Melbourne after a robot crushed him against a stack of wood at a Colac timber yard.
Authorities believed the force of the robot crushed the man’s pelvis.
The man, 47, was in a stable condition at the Royal Melbourne Hospital late yesterday.
Ambulance Victoria spokesman John Mullen said the incident occurred about 7am.
He said an air ambulance flew from Warrnambool to transport the man to Melbourne.
“The man was flown from Central Reserve to the Royal Melbourne Hospital in a serious but stable condition,” Mr Mullen said.
Union officials said yesterday the industrial accident at AKD Softwood in Forrest Street, Colac, resulted from a failure of staff supervision.
Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union’s Travis Lawson said AKD had a track record of industrial accidents.
“AKD have just come off a good-behaviour bond,” Mr Lawson said.
“In the past 12 months the union has raised concerns about workplace safety with AKD,” he said.
“Obviously systems for the prevention of workplace accidents are inadequate.
“The union has grave concerns at AKD’s failure to provide adequate supervision.”
AKD failed to respond to The Colac Herald’s calls.
Worksafe spokesman Michael Birt said the incident was under investigation.
“The site was closed down until our inspector investigated the incident,” Mr Birt said.
“The man sustained pelvic injuries as a result of a blockage in the robot stacking process,” he said.
“The man appears to have been caught between the machine and wood stacks.”
Mr Birt said AKD used the robot to stack cut wood.
He said AKD had offered counselling to staff and the injured man’s family.
Mr Birt encouraged workers to ensure they maintained a safe distance from mobile machinery.
“If any piece of machinery has wheels or moves it is important for people to be out of its way unless it is stationary,” he said.
Mr Lawson said it was crucial workers took extra care ahead of the Christmas holiday period.
“Unions and managements never like this happening or having to tell families their relative won’t be coming home tonight,” Mr Lawson said.
“It is very sad for all involved,” he said.
“We are getting close to Christmas so staff will have a lot on their mind.
“I encourage everyone to take a breath before they do things because we want all our workers spending Christmas with their families.”
