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Pieces of shrapnel weighing as much as 25 kilograms have been found almost one kilometre from the site where a truck hauling blasting material caught fire and exploded in the West Australian outback.
Key points:
- An investigation into the source of the fire that caused the explosion is ongoing
- The driver abandoned the trailer after he was unable to extinguish the blaze
- The Western Roads Federation says such incidents are "rare as rocking horse manure"
The shrapnel was discovered by investigators from the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS) after 34 tonnes of ammonium nitrate emulsion blew up in the shire of Laverton, about 1,000 kilometres east of Perth.
The blast started spot fires in the surrounding bushland and investigators found trees that had been snapped off at the base 40 metres from the explosion.
Further damage was found about 150 metres away, where branches thicker than tennis balls were sheared off trees.
Tyre fire led to explosion
The incident happened at about 11:30am on October 24, two hours after the driver noticed a tyre fire on his rear trailer.
The road train was one of three vehicles that had been travelling to the Gruyere gold mine on unsealed roads for about 90 kilometres when the fire was discovered.
Despite using three extinguishers to fight the blaze, the driver disconnected and abandoned the trailer after the fire grew too "intense".
A report compiled by DMIRS dangerous goods director Steve Emery found the trailer was completely destroyed after it exploded, leaving a crater 17 metres wide and one metre deep in the middle of the Great Central Highway.
Western Roads Federation chief executive Cam Dumesny said cases of exploding trucks were uncommon.
"These are as rare as rocking horse manure," he said.
"They're just phenomenally rare in Australia — we've got such high safety regulations around carrying dangerous goods in the country."
A DMIRS spokesperson said the vehicle was licensed under the Dangerous Goods Safety Regulations 2007 Act and the driver was authorised to haul dangerous goods.
Not the first time
Mr Dumesny said the regulations imposed on moving dangerous goods were so high that he could only recall one incident while working in the industry.
"In my time, the last 10 years, there's only been one other and that was in south-west Queensland," he said.
Mr Dumesny said the investigation was ongoing and a final report was yet to be released, but there were some known issues could have caused the fire.
"Overheating of the wheel bearings can contribute," he said.
"We'll certainly be looking at pulling that [the report] apart when it comes out and working with specialists in the maintenance sector of the transport industry to see what we can do to improve."
The DMIRS investigation is ongoing and a final report will be completed at a later date.