"McArthur River Mine workers break silence with allegations of serious injuries from toxic smoke", 28 November 2016

Former fly-in-fly-out workers have told the ABC they have serious injuries after breathing in toxic smoke from burning rock on one of the world's biggest zinc and lead mines, and that owner Glencore has not offered compensation or assistance.

They are also alleging that staff at the McArthur River Mine in the Northern Territory were ordered to cover up the extent of a fire on the huge man-made mountain where the company is dumping its waste rock.

For the first time Glencore has publicly confirmed to the ABC that it is aware that one of its workers has alleged they have been injured. The dump has been burning since at least 2013, sending out a huge plume of sulphur dioxide smoke.

One worker said he had to go to hospital to be treated for debilitating conditions in February 2015, after a year working as a bulldozer driver surrounded by the toxic smoke...

The worker said in 2014, the company issued workers with gas masks and monitors."But they were unreliable, if they were exposed to the gas for more than three to five minutes, they would just give a continual read-out," the former worker said, adding: "Masks didn't really help much."...

Workers have told the ABC that Worksafe inspectors visited the site but the company made sure employees with health complaints did not speak to them...

Glencore has responded by saying the mine complies with the NT Workers' Rehabilitation and Compensation Act...