An Australian mine worker, Matthew Norman, was among the nine people killed in an accident at the South Deep gold mine operated by Gold Fields near Carletonville outside Johannesburg last Thursday.

Matthew’s father Kevin contacted the Kalgoorlie Miner and we ran the story on Tuesday. Only one local TV station has picked it up since then.

Matthew had lived and worked in Kalgoorlie before moving to Perth and then South Africa to be with his wife.

Mr Norman said he had heard reports his son was concerned about safety conditions
on the mine.

“There’s a lot of hearsay he was worried about safety, but the man from the mining company said he hadn’t heard that – but he would say that, wouldn’t he?” Mr Norman said.

Matthew’s uncle Rick Brown lives in Kalgoorlie. He said he was saddened by reports lapses in safety procedures could have led to his nephew’s death.

“It seems that with the mining companies over there, it’s just statistics,” he said.

“Over here, we lose one person and there is uproar. They need support from our mining companies over here, in regards to safety.”

It’s the safety issue I want to raise in the public domain. With increased contact between Australia and South Africa, and the globalisation of mining, it’s likely more Australians will go there to work at various times.

Australia has arguably the best mine safety record in the world. Hopefully we can transfer our safety skills, knowledge and expertise to other countries.

Meanwhile, there’s no consoling the family of a young man who had friends, a loving family and a promising future.

A highlight is the big parade down Hannan Street, held this year in the late afternoon on Saturday, December 2, 2006.

Our kids loved seeing the floats and machinery, especially the big trucks from KCGM (pictured).

According to the festival website, all over the world, miners carry a faith that St Barbara will protect them as they work and it is no different for the local Kalgoorlie-Boulder community where mining has been the lifeblood of the Goldfields for more than 100 years.

In 1999, the Eastern Regional Council of the Chamber of Minerals & Energy WA presented the inaugural Saint Barbara’s Festival as a gift to the Goldfields community. Local artist, Nana Lye was commissioned to design the official St Barbara’s statue and fountain in the town square, and it still stands there proudly today.

The unveiling of the sculpture was accompanied by a community celebration and street parade and from that time on, the Goldfields community has celebrated the annual St Barbara’s Festival coinciding with the first weekend in December.

A scene from the Balzano Barrow Race.

I’m gearing up for the Balzano Barrow Race this weekend when I’ll be one of five people in a team pushing an aerodynamic wheelbarrow 21km from Kanowna to Kalgoorlie. We’re supposed to finish in about one hour, which means about 40 short sharp sprints each. Pure madness.

Anyway, I thought I should check out the route, so rode my bike to Kanowna and back today. It was a 50km trip from my place in Hannans.

I was riding into a strong wind in both directions. The sun was baking hot and there were trucks aplenty. The road goes past the Ninga Mia Aboriginal settlement, Loongana Lime and the rubbish dump, so it’s not exactly the tourist part of town.

Kanowna itself is an historic gold mining town, which once had a population of several thousand. Today there’s nothing there except some signposts and the modern Kanowna Belle gold mine of Barrick. There’s a cemetery, where I felt like dropping in for a rest.

At least the route is flat. Here’s hoping for cool weather on Sunday.

I searched for my name on Google tonight and a reference to the Tanjil Bren bushfire tragedy was one of the first hits I came across.

A little later I discovered a Queensland Warden’s Court finding into the death of Michael John Gorey in a mining accident at Mount Isa in 1991.

The latter Gorey is almost certainly related, suggesting the Michael John name might not be a happy combination.