Simon Mukwarami identified as boilermaker who died at South32’s Worsley Alumina refinery in South West

A 47-year-old boilermaker who died earlier this month at South32’s Worsley Alumina operation is being remembered as a loving husband and father who wanted to build a better life for his family in Australia. Simon Mukwarami fell to his death in the early hours of Saturday on March 14 at the alumina refinery near Collie, marking the first fatality at a mining or refining operation in WA since August last year. Multiple sources have told The West Australian Mr Mukwarami fell from a significant height through grid mesh while working on a digester. Miner’s Promise — a Perth-based charity that provides support for bereaved mining and resources families — is calling for donations for Mr Mukwarami’s family. “Simon was 47 years old, loving husband to Patience and father to Natasha. They had been building a life in Australia, full of hope and opportunity, shaping the future they had dreamed of together,” it stated. “We are reaching out with love in our hearts to ask for your support.” The West earlier this week reported that WorkSafe gave South32’s Worsley Alumina two of the seven awards on offer at its annual “safety excellence” awards on October 28. This was the most of any mining or refining operation. South32 mines WA’s jarrah forests for bauxite, which is then fed through the Worsley refinery to create alumina powder. That alumina powder is then exported for smelting into aluminium. In September 2014, 66-year-old Colin Whitton died at Worsley Alumina after falling down an elevator shaft near a conveyor belt.