Queensland's mining industry regulator has effectively shut down a Bowen Basin coal mine where a 56-year-old Bundaberg man died on Thursday afternoon.
QCoal, the owners of Byerwen Coal Mine near Glenden, about 160km west of Mackay, earlier voluntarily suspended operations.
The man died in a two-vehicle "industrial accident", just three weeks after another mine worker died when he was hit by a demountable building being lifted by a pick and carry crane.
Resources Safety Health Queensland (RSHQ) has issued a directive to suspend the use of all heavy vehicles at the mine.
Chief executive Rob Djukic said the move would effectively stop most operations at the mine.
"QCoal has chosen to suspend operations at the mine, but we've taken this extra step to ensure activities involving heavy vehicles cannot take place until our inspector is satisfied that it is safe to do so," he said.
"We need to allow the mine to continue with some activities because it would be unsafe if it were to cease operating suddenly."
QCoal said workers were sent home on full pay, pending the outcome of investigations, with a small crew remaining on site for critical services.
The Byerwen coal mine is located near Glenden in Central Queensland.
Union calls for mine closure
The state government has rejected calls from the Mining and Energy Union to revoke QCoal's mining licence.
Resources Minister Scott Stewart said the government does not have the power to do that and it is up to RSHQ to make decisions about worker safety.
QCoal said the man who died this week was employed by contractor Macmahon, which has offered counselling to workers.
Union general vice-president Steven Smyth criticised QCoal's management over the first death earlier this month, saying "workers couldn't speak out and some of them didn't … for fear of their job being at risk".
"The mine can't be operating at the acceptable level of risk that the law requires, if we've had a number of fatalities and a number of serious incidents over the past 18 months.
"There's got to be some stern action, because we owe it to the workers to return home safe each and every day."
Legislation 'toughest in the world'
Mr Stewart said Queensland has the toughest safety legislation in the world, but that investigations would help improve measures.
"This is another person who's gone to work to do the right thing and not come home to family and friends," he said.
"We've introduced legislation. We've introduced resets about making sure that people really call out if they feel unsafe, and we're seeing that change of culture.
"But a death on a work site is never acceptable, and if there's anything more we can do, we'll continue to work with the industry."
Premier Steven Miles said the incident was tragic.
"The fact that this is the second tragedy on that site is very, very concerning," he said.
Mine vehicle fatalities preventable
Of the six miners who have died in Australia this year, three have been from Queensland.
University of Queensland mining occupational health and safety Professor David Cliff said fatality rates have not improved in 10 years.
"These are not things where you can argue, 'I think people are unlucky, acts of God, things we could not predict or prevent," Professor Cliff said.
"Vehicle accidents are preventable. People getting crushed by things are preventable.
"The mining industry is a very highly educated workforce and well-resourced in general, so I can see no reason why we still have fatalities," he said.