Former explosives expert Darren Flanagan will be the guest speaker at a public event next Thursday night.
Mr Flanagan is to be Cobar Shire Council’s Health and Wellbeing Day speaker and Council is inviting the public to go along to his talk.
Having been one of the explosives experts who was at the forefront of the Beaconsfield Mine rescue in 2006, Mr Flanagan has an interesting story to tell.
He earned the nickname ‘The Gun’ nationally through his critical role in mine disaster after he was requested to prepare, charge, and eventually fire the explosives that released the two men who were trapped nearly 1km beneath the surface of the collapsed Tasmanian gold mine.
Following this harrowing event, Mr Flanagan said he’d been tremendously affected by the ordeal and had to learn to work through the pain and trauma it had left him with.
He decided to share his story with others and now travels throughout Australia as a highly respected motivational speaker.
During his talk, Mr Flanagan speaks about the enormity of the rescue mission itself; the importance of teamwork, risk management and workplace safety; as well as his personal struggle with post-traumatic stress following the event. His presentations are passionate and professional with a mix of humour as well.
