The NSW District Court at Sydney last week handed down the sentence to Go Go Petroleum Ltd after the company pleaded guilty to breaching the Work Health and Safety Act by exposing a worker to risk of death or serious injury.

District Court Judge David Russell stated it was a "miracle" that nobody was killed or seriously injured in the blast, which scattered dirt, fibreglass and pieces of metal over nearby homes and streets.

On February 26, 2018, a plumber working on a new service station on Docker Street was ordered by a supervisor to use an air compressor to test an underground fuel tank at 10 times its maximum pressure rating.

The 30,000-litre tank exploded, creating a loud bang that was heard across Turvey Park and sent debris flying for hundreds of metres, including an 83-kilogram metal cover that landed 82 metres away on a public street.

The plumber suffered a graze to the forehead and was taken to Wagga Base Hospital but not treated, and suffered a stiff neck in the days after the incident.

Judge Russell found that Go Go Petroleum should have been aware of the risk of over-filling the tank during testing due to the guidance provided by a sign on the tank and details in its written manual that was kept on-site.

"The risk was entirely foreseeable ... the likelihood of the risk occurring was extremely high since the tank was over pressurised by a factor of 10," Judge Russell stated in his judgement.

"The potential consequences of the risk were death or serious injury. It was a miracle that no worker was killed or injured.

"Simple steps were available to eliminate or minimise the risk. There was no burden or inconvenience of implementing those steps."

The plumber had more than 30 years' experience as a licensed plumber and gasfitter but had not carried out an underground tank test before and was not supervised during the procedure.

Judge Russell noted that Go Go Petroleum had completed its own investigation and engaged a work health and safety consultant to draft and prepare a new safety management system, which had been implemented.

The company had to replace the tank and combined with additional labour, costs, delays and impact upon other site works, faced an additional project costs between $450,000 and $500,000.

Judge Russell fined the company $120,000 after a 25 per cent discount for an early guilty plea and also ordered it to pay more than $43,400 to SafeWork NSW, which had prosecuted the case.

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