A corner has handed down his findings into the death of a man killed in a workplace accident at a manufacturing business in Launceston over a decade ago.
Joshua John Dingjan, 24, died on November 7, 2013 after the forklift he was using to unload goods from a truck at Roadside Products in St Leonards flipped.
The now-defunct business faced charges for failing to comply with health and safety regulations in 2015, leading to a length legal battle in the years following the incident.
Dingjan was in the process of unloading packs of steel from a truck when the load shifted on the forklift, causing it to tip onto its right side.
Coroner Robert Webster said Dingjan was crushed immediately underneath the forklift and pronounced dead at the scene.
“Mr Dingjan was described by his colleagues in Launceston, as ‘a hard worker’ with a ‘great work ethic’ and a ‘good operator’. He was considered a safe worker,” Webster said.
“Mr Dingjan was a highly qualified, competent and diligent forklift operator. Contrary to his training he has attempted to unload the pack of steel on a slope when not wearing a seatbelt.”
He recommended all forklift operators wear the provided seat belts and never load or unload on a slope, practices which Dingjan had, on that day, neglected.
He also said all packs of steel should be attached to a pallet or dunnage so they can be safely loaded onto, and unloaded from, any truck without slipping.
“I convey my sincere condolences to the family and loved ones of Mr Dingjan,” he said.
