SAFETY HEALTH & WELLBEING
FIELDWORK IN REMOTE AREAS
Consider the following hypothetical scenario based
on similar actual incidents. Two USYD students are
driving a rented 4WD to a remote aboriginal
community in the Great Victoria Desert, about 700
kilometres north-east of Kalgoorlie. They are
travelling there for the first time to meet up with a
fieldwork team who are assisting local people
establish new small businesses. The community is
one of Australia’s most remote areas, about 9-10
hours drive down an unsigned dirt road which
narrows to just a track in places.
THE INCIDENT
The students set off at a good pace, travelling 80
km/hr down the unsealed road to make
Tjuntjuntjara before nightfall. After a few hours
attention starts to wander…as they round a curve
they hit a rutted sandy patch. The 4WD slides out of
control and off the road, knocking over small bushes
and trees. It eventually comes to a stop before
encountering anything of significant mass.
remember to drive more carefully on sandy roads in
future. However much more needs to be considered.
THE INVESTIGATION
If the students had not been able to drive the car
back to Kalgoorlie, there may have been a very
different and tragic outcome. This remote section of
road may not have seen another vehicle travel down
it for many days.
They get out and survey the damage and count
themselves lucky. The driver sustains some
significant bruising and whiplash injuries to their
neck and the 4WD has a cracked windshield and
some minor body damage. The students then
discover the 4WD has blown one of its tyres, and
realise neither of them have experience in changing
a 4WD tyre. The soft ground surface adds an extra
element of difficulty.
On analysis of this incident there is evident a number
of aspects in the planning for this trip which are
inadequate. Further investigation found:
This hypothetical scenario has a happy ending - the
students manage to get the 4WD back on the road,
and drive the four hours back to Kalgoorlie. The
incident is then viewed by the team as just an
unfortunate accident. A near miss that, while
unlucky, nobody was seriously hurt and they’ll
•
WHS_INC_INF_Fieldwork_5
•
Neither student had received any 4WD training.
A 4WD car in off-road conditions handles very
differently to a car on tarmac. Specific training
and competency assessment is important,
particularly for drivers who may also have very
little routine driving experience.
The 4WD only carried a basic first aid kit. In
remote areas a specific fieldwork first aid kit
should have been carried. Neither student had
any first aid training.
Page 1 of 2
SAFETY HEALTH & WELLBEING
•
•
•
•
•
•
The only communication equipment available
were mobile phones, which do not work in
much of Australia’s remote interior.
The rented 4WD came equipped with an
Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon
(EPIRB), however the students did not know
how it worked - or even how to turn it on.
There was no management plan prepared to
detail the actions to take in the event of an
emergency.
There was no schedule for regular contact, so
no-one would have realised if they were
overdue.
They were carrying no emergency food or water
supplies. In a hot climate a person can lose 2L of
body in less than three hours, without water the
human body can expire within two days.
They had any not received any training in
remote area survival skills.
had seen. Consequently the company was fined over
$50,000 for breaching their duty of care – the
highest fine of this type ever handed out at that
time.
KEY SAFETY LESSONS
When supervising fieldwork activities, ensure you:
•
•
•
•
•
•
THE RISK
The inherent risk in fieldwork is high. There is often a
great potential for injury or fatality when things go
wrong, particularly in remote areas; or work in
waterways, tidal areas or oceans; or in overseas
locations.
Risks can be mitigated by good field trip planning
and robust risk controls. Planning for a fieldtrip must
always take into account the ‘unexpected’.
This incident is very similar to an actual ‘near miss’
event which occurred in 2009. In this event two
workers became lost on the drive to Tjuntjuntjara.
The workers had to drive nearly 23 hours straight
until they finally came across a roadhouse and were
able to call for help. The workers were not trained,
the 4WD was not adequately equipped and there
was no way of communicating or calling for help.
•
•
Establish a fieldwork safety plan
Use experienced and competent personnel to
lead the fieldwork
Have appropriate communication available at all
times, e.g. mobile phones, radio, satellite
phones, GPS tracking devices.
Establish and communicate to participants the
fieldwork emergency response plan
Make available appropriate safety, emergency
and first aid resources
Prompt participants to disclose medical
information that may impact their health and
safety during the fieldwork.
Have a pre-trip briefing with participants to
establish physical fitness requirements, code of
conduct regarding behaviour, and any specific
hazards associated with the work prior to
departure.
Check drivers and operators of other plant &
equipment are appropriately licensed and
experienced with the planned operating
conditions.
The University Fieldwork Standard assists those who
conduct and supervise fieldwork and describes
minimum performance standards for fieldwork
safety. It is important to make sure that expectations
are clear and that a consistent approach is applied to
the management of all fieldwork activities.
More management tools and information
Nobody got injured, but when WorkSafe WA
investigated it was stated that this was one of the
most shocking examples of an employer failing to
provide and maintain a safe work environment they
WHS_INC_INF_Fieldwork_5
Page 2 of 2