A pre-blast inspection checklist is the shotfirer’s structured check, made before firing, that the blast plan is current, the exclusion zone is set and guarded, every person and piece of plant is clear, communications and warnings work, and weather, lightning and fume risk are acceptable. It carries straight on into the post-blast inspection: misfire checks, fume clearance and the decision to re-open the area.
This guide covers mine and quarry blasting with explosives, not abrasive blasting. It sets out what Queensland and New South Wales law requires, where pre-blast checks tend to fail, and gives a complete field checklist with “escalate if” triggers you can adapt to your own blast management plan. Your site procedures, AS 2187 and the explosives supplier’s data set the actual distances and times.
Why the pre-blast check matters
When a blast goes wrong, the explosive has usually done what it was designed to do. The failure is a person or vehicle where nobody thought they were, a guard who was not told the shot was delayed, a fume cloud drifting onto a road that was reopened too early, or a misfire that was not found before the loader went back in.
Those failures happen in the hour either side of firing, when time pressure is highest. A written shotfirer checklist turns a mental routine into a blast area inspection record that can be checked and handed over, and gives the shotfirer a documented reason to stop.
What the law requires
Queensland coal mines
Under the Coal Mining Safety and Health Regulation 2017, section 115 requires explosives at a surface mine to be stored, used and disposed of under AS 2187, the Australian Standard currently in force under that designation. Section 116 requires a standard operating procedure covering, among other things, identifying and controlling hazards during charging and firing, finding, recovering and detonating misfired explosives, and keeping a record about misfires. The charging and firing procedure must have regard to the proximity of unrelated activities and to ground conditions, and must state the allowable period for explosives to remain in the ground before they are fired.
Queensland metalliferous mines and quarries
The Mining and Quarrying Safety and Health Regulation 2017 is more specific about the blast itself. Section 69 requires a risk management process before explosives are used, considering hazards including lightning, extraneous electricity, reactive ground, ground at elevated temperature and unstable ground. Section 70 requires written blasting procedures that provide for blast times, warning and guarding people against entering an unsafe area, removing people to a safe place before firing, each person involved being able to reach a safe position at normal walking pace, firing from a safe position, deciding when it is safe to re-enter, examining the blasted area and blast hole remnants, and passing information about charging and blasted locations from one shift to the next. Section 72 requires a procedure for the earliest practicable detection, recording and treatment of misfires, and for warning of the misfire and the presence of explosives.
New South Wales
Under the Work Health and Safety (Mines and Petroleum Sites) Regulation 2022, section 33 requires the operator to manage risks from explosives and to ensure dealing with explosives complies with the Explosives Act 2003 and AS 2187. The explosives control plan in Schedule 2 must take into account the full set of phases of use, including charging and firing, and the potential for fly rock, and must set out procedures for finding, recovering and disposing of explosives that misfire.
The NSW Resources Regulator’s coal explosives assessment report for July 2024 to July 2025 shows what inspectors look at: exclusion zones, the blast guard’s role, re-entry wait times and misfires. It recommends treating every misfired electronic detonator as damaged.
Exclusion zone and guarding
The exclusion zone is only as good as the guards holding it. A blast guarding checklist should record each guard’s name, position and confirmation time, not just a tick against “guards posted”.
- Check the zone against the current plan. A zone drawn last week may miss a new ramp or crib hut.
- Brief guards in person on the firing time, the signals and how to reach the shotfirer directly.
- Plan for delay. A shot that is held for an hour must be re-confirmed: guards stay, positions are re-checked and nobody drifts back in.
Our guide to quarry blasting exclusion zones covers how zones are sized and why fly rock and fume need separate consideration.
Weather, lightning and fume
Lightning is one of the hazards the Queensland metalliferous and quarry regulation names outright. Every site needs a stated trigger, such as a detection distance on a lightning warning system, that stops loading and clears the shot, and the pre-blast check should record the reading at the time of firing.
Wind direction and strength decide where post-blast fume and dust will go. Business Queensland’s page on managing blast fumes gives the short-term exposure limit for nitrogen dioxide as 5 ppm, asks sites to set credible blast exclusion and fume management zones, and requires significant fume events to be reported to the Explosives Inspectorate. It points to Queensland Guidance Note 20 on oxides of nitrogen in open cut blasting, which is guidance rather than a mandatory standard. The detail is in our article on blast fume management in open cut mines.
Sleeping shots and the loaded shot
A shot left loaded overnight risks water ingress, product degradation and ground movement. Queensland coal requires the procedure to state the allowable sleep time, so the checklist records when loading finished and confirms the shot is inside that limit.
Keep traffic off the shot. Business Queensland’s guidance on blast site activity hazards describes vehicles catching and snapping signal tube, which has in some cases fired a loaded hole. Its controls include avoiding or limiting vehicles on the blast site and using spotters when they must be there.
Post-blast inspection, misfires and re-entry
In mining and quarrying, the post-blast inspection is the second half of the same checklist. After the minimum wait time and once fume has cleared, the shotfirer inspects the muckpile, crest and surrounds for misfires, cut-offs, exposed product, damage and fly rock outside the zone. Only then are the guards stood down.
A suspected misfire keeps the area closed until it is marked, recorded and handed over to the next shift. Our guide to quarry misfire management covers the treatment side in detail.
The pre-blast inspection checklist
Use this as the basis for a site form. The “escalate if” column describes the observation that should stop or delay the blast, or keep the area closed after it. Your blast management plan sets the actual distances, times and triggers.
| Check | What good looks like | Escalate if |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Blast plan and paperwork | ||
| Blast plan and design | Current, approved and matches the shot as loaded | Design changed during loading without review |
| Loading records | Hole depths, water, product and quantities recorded | Holes loaded off design, overcharged or not recorded |
| Previous shift handover | Charging and blasted locations and any misfires known | Handover missing or a known misfire not addressed |
| Blast time and notifications | Time confirmed; neighbours and other crews notified as required | Notification not given or time changed without re-notifying |
| 2. Exclusion zone | ||
| Zone boundary | Drawn on the current mine plan and sized for fly rock and fume | Zone based on an old layout or misses a new road, ramp or work area |
| Fume management zone | Set downwind of the shot for today’s conditions | Wind direction puts roads, crib areas or neighbours in the fume path |
| Signs and barricades | In place at every entry to the zone | Any entry point open or unsigned |
| 3. Guarding | ||
| Guard positions | Every access point has a named guard | An access point without a guard |
| Guard briefing | Guards know the firing time, signals and how to reach the shotfirer | Any guard unsure of signals or unable to contact the shotfirer |
| Guard confirmation | Each guard confirms position by radio, logged with time | A guard not confirmed or not answering |
| 4. Clearing people and plant | ||
| Area sweep | Zone physically checked and clear of people | Anyone unaccounted for |
| Mobile and fixed plant | Plant moved out or protected as the plan requires | Plant left in the zone that the plan says must move |
| Firing position | Outside the zone, safe from blast effects, reachable at walking pace | Firing position inside the zone or exposed to fly rock or fume |
| 5. Communications and warnings | ||
| Radio check | Guards, control and shotfirer on the blast channel | Any party unable to hear or transmit |
| Warnings | Site warning signals given in sequence | Warning not given or not heard in part of the zone |
| Stop authority | Everyone knows who can call a stop and how | Stop method unclear |
| 6. Weather, lightning and fume | ||
| Lightning | Warning system checked; no activity inside the site trigger | Lightning inside the trigger distance: stop and clear the shot |
| Wind and visibility | Direction and strength recorded; fume path assessed | Wind toward occupied areas or visibility too poor to see the zone |
| Fume risk factors | Wet holes, sleep time and ground type considered | High fume risk without extra controls |
| 7. The shot | ||
| Sleep time | Loading finish time recorded; inside the allowable period | Sleep time exceeded |
| Surface and tie-in | Connections checked against the design; no damaged lines | Damaged signal tube, leads or trunklines |
| Traffic on the shot | No vehicles on the shot except as controlled by procedure | Vehicle tracks over loaded holes or downlines |
| Ground conditions | Crest and face stable; no reactive or hot ground signs | Cracking, movement, heat or reactive ground |
| 8. Firing | ||
| Final all-clear | All guards confirmed and zone clear immediately before firing | Any doubt: do not fire |
| Firing record | Time of firing and any delay recorded | Unplanned delay without re-confirming guards |
| 9. Post-blast inspection | ||
| Wait time and fume | Minimum wait observed and fume cleared before approach | Visible fume or gas readings above site limits |
| Misfires and cut-offs | Muckpile, face and crest inspected; none found | Suspected misfire or exposed product: keep area closed, mark and record |
| Fly rock and damage | No fly rock outside the zone; no damage to ground or plant | Fly rock outside the zone: report under site procedure |
| Ground after the blast | No new cracking or instability at the crest or walls | New cracking or back break: notify the OCE or geotechnical engineer |
| 10. Re-entry and handover | ||
| All clear | Given by the shotfirer; guards stood down in order | Guards stood down before the inspection is complete |
| Records | Blast outcome, misfires and fume observations recorded | Any misfire or fume event not recorded |
| Handover | Next shift told of blasted locations and any misfire | Misfire not handed over |
Where pre-blast inspections go wrong
- Guards ticked, not confirmed. “Guards posted” is recorded but nobody logged who stood where, so a gap is found only when a vehicle drives through.
- A stale zone. The exclusion zone is copied from the last shot in the same area, and a new ramp or work front is missed.
- Delay without re-checking. The shot is held, guards are relieved or drift, and firing goes ahead on the original confirmation.
- Misfires lost at handover. The misfire is marked in the field but not in the record the next crew reads.
- Tick box drift. The same form passes every time until nobody reads it, which is the risk described in why general checklists create a false sense of safety.
Blasting also feeds other inspections. Back break and new cracking belong in the highwall inspection checklist for the next wall walk, and where the site’s trigger action response plan changes access after a blast, the digital TARP for mining guide shows how to link the inspection outcome to it.
Keeping the shot, the zone and the record together
On blast day the zone is often on a printed plan, the guard list in a notebook and the misfire handover a conversation. When something goes wrong, nobody can show who was where and what was checked.
HazView puts the blast on the site’s shared map. The shot and its exclusion zone can be held as a hazard with an area state, so every role sees the area as open, restricted or closed. The pre-blast and post-blast checklist is attached to that hazard on the map and completed offline in the field, syncing when the device is back in reception. A “misfire found” answer can open an escalation section, photos attach to the question they belong to, and the record can need a countersignature by role before it is closed. On submit, a PDF can be emailed to the people who need it, so the next shift reads the same record. Blast crews can see how it works on the HazView page for blast crews, or book a demo using your own blast form, which is converted like for like first.
For how blasting checks fit alongside the statutory and operational inspections on site, see the overview of mine site inspections in Australia.
Related guides
- Mine Site Inspections in Australia: What the Law Requires, What to Check and What a Defensible Record Looks Like
- Haul Truck Pre-start Checklist for Australian Mine Sites
- Shift Inspection Report: What a Supervisor’s Inspection Must Record
- Why Every Mine Inspection Needs a Location
- All Inspections & Checklists guides
Frequently asked questions
Who completes the pre-blast inspection?
The licensed shotfirer in charge of the blast, working to the site’s blasting procedure. Guards and control contribute confirmations, but the decision to fire rests with the shotfirer.
Is a pre-blast checklist a legal requirement?
The law requires the procedures rather than a particular form. In Queensland, the coal and the mining and quarrying regulations require blasting and misfire procedures, and in New South Wales the explosives control plan must cover charging, firing and misfires. A checklist is the usual way to show those procedures were followed on the day.
What should a post-blast inspection look for?
Misfires, cut-off holes and exposed product, fly rock outside the zone, damage to plant and services, new cracking or back break at the crest, and whether fume has cleared. The area stays closed until the shotfirer gives the all-clear.
What happens if a misfire is found?
The area stays closed, the misfire is marked and recorded, people are warned, and it is treated under the site’s misfire procedure. Queensland and New South Wales law both require a procedure for finding and dealing with misfires, and Queensland coal also requires a record of them.
Does lightning stop a blast?
It should stop loading and firing once it is inside the site’s trigger distance. The Queensland mining and quarrying regulation lists lightning as a hazard to consider before explosives are used; each site sets its own trigger.