Irish backpacker’s scalp and ear ‘torn from her head’

An Australian labour hire company has been fined $60,000 (€42,352) after an Irish backpacker suffered extensive injuries when her hair became caught in a conveyor belt at a fruit-packing facility.

Annie Dunne, who is from Co Tipperary, was assessing the underside of a conveyor belt on November 7th, 2015 in order to clean it when her hair became entangled in a drive shaft and her scalp was torn from her head and one of her ears was torn off.

She was airlifted to the Alfred hospital in Melbourne for treatment after the incident.

T&R Contracting of Shepparton, Victoria, pleaded guilty of failing to provide a safe working environment by not providing instruction and training, and was also ordered to pay court costs of $8,091/€5,696.

The magistrates’ court heard workers were required to clean conveyors while they were powered and moving.

Marnie Williams, executive director of health and safety with government body WorkSafe, says the circumstances of the incident were appalling.

“This truly was a shocking incident that has changed this young woman’s life in a split second,” Ms Williams said in a statement.

“It’s staggering that workers were expected to clean machines which were still in operation.”

She said T&R Contracting hired workers for the fruit business and left them exposed to risk of “serious injury and death”.

Ms Williams said there was a “blatant risk” of serious injury from entanglement, crushing or entrapment with both conveyors in the packing facility.

Kalafatis Packing Pty Ltd and Dimitrios Vagelatos, the manager of the packing plant, are each also facing charges over the incident and are due to appear in court next month.

A crowd funding campaign to help Ms Dunne with her recovery raised more than $35,000/€24,646. She had been working at the fruit-packing job to fulfil the rural work requirements for obtaining a second year on her working holiday visa.