Overturning of SafeWork SA ban sees new ride operating at the Royal Adelaide Show

Details of a decision that has enabled a new ride to operate at this year’s Royal Adelaide Show - following an earlier ban issued by SafeWork SA - have been revealed.

On 26th August, SafeWork SA issued a prohibition notice on Goldenway Amusements Pty Ltd’s Wipe Out ride operating at the Show for the first time as a result of inspectors deeming that patrons who were close to the minimum approved height of 125 centimetres were at risk of being ejected it the ride's primary locking device failed.

SafeWork SA had considered the Wipeout's secondary locking device to be insufficient.

However, after failing to convince SafeWork SA to overturn the ban, Goldenway Amusements sought a stay of the workplace safety watchdog's decision in the South Australian Employment Tribunal.

Goldenway Amusements argued the ride met the relevant Australian standard and had been operated around Australia since 2009 without incident.

This resulted in the Tribunal's Deputy President, Magistrate Stuart Cole, agreeing to stay the decision after the operator agreed to lift the minimum height for patrons from 125cm to 135cm.

Magistrate Cole explained “public safety is a proper concern by SafeWork. I cannot imagine that any sensible person in the community would argue otherwise.

"Nonetheless, the absolute elimination of risk in relation to recreational activities would shut down a large number of rides and experiences in a variety of venues, not just the Royal Adelaide Show."

The decision was delivered last Friday - the day before the show started - but only published on Wednesday.

Goldenway Amusements Director Broderick Pavier questioned SafeWork SA's interpretation of the Australian standards for show rides, highlighting that the Wipe Out, which he has been operating since late 2019, was considered safe in all other parts of Australia.

Suggesting that SafeWork SA is interpreting Australian standards differently to other states, Pavier advised "my ride is safe.”

Two other Goldenway Amusements rides - Speed 2 and XXXL - were banned from operating at the Royal Adelaide Show in 2019 because of concerns about locking devices.

Pavier went on to suggest that the inconsistency was another reason for the need for national regulation for show rides, as South Australia's Deputy Coroner called for recently.

In June, South Australia's Deputy Coroner, who investigated Adelene Leong's death in 2014, recommended a new nationwide system of regulation for high-energy show rides.

Pavier agreed the rules should be consistent nationally to give more certainty for operators, adding "Adelaide is missing out on some of the best rides in the country," he said.

A spokesperson for SafeWork SA said the agency had been working with ride operators for several months before the start of this year's Royal Adelaide Show.

The spokesperson commented “this has involved ensuring compliance to their work health and safety obligations under the South Australian Work, Health & Safety Act 2012, including verifying engineering, inspection, and design registration documents.

"SafeWork SA uses the National Amusement Devices Audit Tool, used nationally by all work, health and safety regulators for amusement devices."

The Royal Adelaide Show has returned this month having been cancelled in 2020 and 2021 because of COVID-19 restrictions around mass gatherings.

Goldenway Amusements, based on the NSW Central Coast, introduced the Wipe Out, a KMG Surf ride, at the 2019/2020 Gosford Waterfront Carnival.

Images: The Wipe Out (top, credit: Goldenway Amusements) and the ride at the Royal Adelaide Show (below, credit: Facebook/Royal Adelaide Show).