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More details on the recent frictional ignition event at the Grasstree mine were revealed in the monthly Queensland Mines Inspectorate compilation report.

“An ignition of methane occurred when a continuous miner intersected a methane drainage in-seam borehole,” the inspectorate said.

“The flame self-extinguished shortly after it ignited.”

Anglo American Metallurgical Coal has already confirmed that the frictional ignition event occurred and self-extinguished after about 10 seconds at its Grasstree mine on November 29 at around 6.45pm. The Grasstree mine forms part of the Capcoal complex.

The inspectorate confirmed all appropriate controls were in place at Grasstree, with the circumstances behind the high potential incident to be shared with the rest of the industry.

“The Mines Inspectorate has investigated this incident and supports the actions taken by the mine to date,” a DEEDI Mines and Energy spokesperson previously told ILN.

“The operator will be sharing their management of this incident with the underground mining industry.”

A continuous miner also intersected a decommissioned borehole used for methane drainage at Carborough Downs in late November.

This incident allowed gas to infiltrate the mine’s workings, ending development as the crew was moved away from the area.

“The Mines Inspectorate is aware of this incident, which was due to the mine operation changing the position of a cut-through,” the DEEDI spokesperson recently told ILN.

“The inspectorate worked closely with the operator to implement effective corrective actions.”

There were other serious safety incidents in the state’s longwall sector last month.

At an undisclosed mine, a drift runner reversed out of a cut-through and struck an Eimco load-haul-dump.

The inspectorate also noted a big roof fall which occurred in November.

“A fall of roof, approximately 40 metres long, 3 metres high and the width of the roadway occurred in the inbye side of a longwall intake.”

No one was hurt by the incident, but it wasn’t the only roof fall in an underground mine in the state either.

“A fall of roof 3.5 to 4 metres deep occurred at an intersection that had been previously bolted,” the inspectorate said of a separate incident.

Other incidents noted by the inspectorate

The wet weather in the state has become worse this month, but a storm in November managed to detach “a number of sheets of fibreglass cladding” from the side of a cooling tower at one mine.

A worker also lost the tip of a middle finger when he closed an underground ventilation door.

On the surface at an unrevealed mine, the enclosure door of a transportable substation auxiliary transformer blew off its hinges after fuses short circuited.

Spontaneous combustion of stockpiled waste material started a grass fire at another undisclosed mine.

Slag from “overhead gouging activity” at a coal handling and preparation plant also set fire to rubbish on a lower floor of the facility.

There were 142 serious incidents in November compared to the 12-month rolling average of 122 per month.