Fund to help family after man dies in ink works accident

Dec 06, 2017 at 11:52 pm by Staff


An accident at DIC Australia's ink factory in inner-Sydney Auburn has left one man dead and two others in hospital.

Reports vary about how the three men came to be in one of the huge cylindrical tanks or vats, which was being maintained but still had some ink in it. The ABC quoted employee Michael Stinson that two men had gone to the rescue of the third, who had become trapped.

Fire and ambulance personnel who went to the site said the men - believed to be in their 30s or 40s - had been "trapped by compression" by an arm inside the vat.

One man died inside the tank despite attempts to save his life, while the other two were freed from the tank and taken to Westmead Hospital with leg injuries, and are reported to be in a stable condition. The accident is being investigated by police and Worksafe representatives.

DIC makes a range of ink products including news black and colour inks, some of which are exported to Asia, and subcontracts all maintenance at the site.

DIC ANZ managing director Ian Johns said that while strenuous efforts were being made to establish exactly what happened, "our greatest concern at the moment is Craig's family, especially at this time of year".

He also thanked customers for their offers of support: "The industry has been absolutely outstanding," he said.

The accident happened in the news black facility, which was still closed as investigations continued into this week; other sections have reopened and supplies are continuing as normal.

• The dead man has been named as Craig Tanner, a 42-year-old contractor from Engadine. A crowdfunding pledge site launched to help his widow and three children, aged seven and under, is here. By Monday afternoon it had raised more than $43,000, ahead of the original $30,000 target.

Pictured: ABC News had aerial coverage of the accident site

Sections: Print business

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