Abstract:
Risk assessments have been conducted in the South African mining industry over the past 20 years,
but still we do not always correctly identify the root cause of an incident. An incident investigation is
not only about identification of the hazards, but also about understanding the way hazards materialize
and what the release mechanisms are. Fundamentally, risk is about uncertainty and for this reason
incident investigations remain a very subjective practice. In addition, the low level of detail obtained
by conventional surveying is not appropriate in the changing world of technology and data availability.
However, a significant improvement in risk management has been shown where mines have adopted
the principle of multilateral hazard identification through the inclusion of laser scanning, along with
multiple control regimes to avoid repeats of incidents. This article provides an outline and description
of the mines’ accident investigation process from the time an incident occurs to the point when the
investigation is closed out. It also examines how laser scanning can be used to add significant value in
terms of identifying the real or root cause of an incident and in this way allow real working solutions
to be formulated to avoid incident repeats. What has been learned from laser scans of a number of
incidents is discussed. The article highlights the requirements for forensic surveying specifically in an
underground environment and alerts the reader to pitfalls and potential flaws that can be introduced
into a forensic survey if correct attention is not given to fundamental surveying principles.
