Callide Power Station: 34 Minutes to Disaster

Process Safety with Trish & Traci

In this episode, Trish and Traci discuss the catastrophic failure at Queensland's Callide Power Station C4 on May 25, 2021, which caused power outages for 470,000 people. During a routine switching operation to replace DC battery systems, a voltage drop was misinterpreted as an AC fault, triggering a cascading failure. Both AC and DC systems failed, leaving the turbine without lubrication while it continued spinning backwards at 3,000 RPM.

The incident demonstrates that process safety principles apply beyond traditional chemical plants to any high-hazard environment. Key lessons include proper hazard identification, functioning safety controls, and maintaining culture, leadership, accountability and governance in safety management.