Department fined over Questacon burns incident
An Australian Government department has been convicted and fined $140,000 for work health and safety failures after a child suffered serious injuries from an exhibit at the National Science and Technology Centre, Questacon.
The Department of Industry, Science and Resources (DISR) pleaded guilty in the ACT Magistrates Court to a single charge under the Commonwealth Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (WHS Act), admitting it exposed visitors to a risk of death or serious injury.
Questacon is a division of DISR. The incident happened at the Canberra facility on 23 July 2022.
Comcare’s investigation found the nine-year-old child visiting the centre had applied alcohol-based hand sanitiser provided by Questacon and then touched a plasma globe in one of the galleries. The child’s hands caught fire, causing second degree burns to their wrists, hands and fingers, and a blister to their right forearm.
DISR admitted it had failed to comply with its primary health and safety duty under the WHS Act, and that it should have taken reasonably practicable measures to eliminate or minimise the risks by:
- Arranging the plasma globe display so it could only have been subject to supervised use by trained Questacon workers
- Replacing the alcohol-based sanitiser in the sanitiser stations with non-alcohol-based hand sanitiser or providing portable soap and water handwashing stations
- Warning members of the public against using flammable substances, including alcohol-based hand sanitiser, before or when touching the plasma globes.
Comcare CEO Colin Radford said the regulator’s investigation found the injury risk from plasma globes and contact with alcohol-based sanitiser was significant and obvious.
“This was not an isolated event. The child’s injuries marked the sixth safety incident in five months involving the globes,” Mr Radford said.
“This included a near miss in February 2022 where a staff member noticed the combination of hand sanitiser with metal could cause sparks from a plasma globe, and another incident that month where a visitor received a shock to a hand.
“Questacon’s response to these incidents was inadequate. It’s a large, interactive facility with inherent workplace health and safety risks that require a proactive approach and constant vigilance.”
DISR pleaded guilty to a Category 2 offence under the WHS Act, carrying a maximum penalty of $1.5 million. The matter was prosecuted by the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions, and the Department was sentenced by Magistrate Ian Temby.
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