Arnold Dix Age, Wife, Family, Biography & More

Some Lesser Known Facts About Arnold Dix

• Arnold Dix is an Australian geologist, an engineer, and a lawyer, who is widely known for being a tunnelling expert. In November 2023, he played a crucial role in a 400-hour rescue operation aimed at extracting 41 workers who were trapped in the Uttarkashi tunnel.

• He hails from Monbulk, Victoria, Australia.

• He has been a corporate lawyer and barrister in Australia since 1989 and has been part of the NFPA committee since 1998.

• Since 1999, Arnold Dix has been involved in various capacities at Arnold Dix – Consulting Firm, working as a lifeguard, scientist, and lawyer.

• His contributions have extended to ALARP since 2001, underground works chambers at Legal & Technical since March 2020, and ITA-AITES since May 2022.

• His diverse professional background includes roles as a scientist at the Office of Supervising Scientists in Australia and a partner at Maddock Lonie and Chisholm from 2009 to 2011.

• He has worked as an adjunct associate professor at the University of West Sydney from 2010 to 2017 and a visiting professor at Tokyo City University in Japan from 2017 to 2019.

• As an executive committee member at the International Tunnelling and Underground Space Association since 2017, Dix contributes to industry leadership.

• In the legal field, Dix worked as a strategic advisor at White & Case LLP from March 2022 to June 2023.

• Arnold Dix is a leading global expert in underground tunnel construction, appointed as the International Tunnelling Underground Space president.

• Renowned for his expertise in tunnel safety and disaster response, Dix guides potential risks associated with underground construction.

• Throughout his career, Dix has played a significant role in addressing and mitigating disaster risks, investigating incidents such as the 9/11 disaster in New York, the London Bombings, and the Madrid Bombings. He has also assessed fire-related disasters, including the Daegu Metro Fires and Hong Kong Metro fires.

• Arnold Dix is affiliated with various organizations and associations, including VPELA (Victorian Planning & Environmental Law Association), ACICA (Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration), Guinness Book of Records extreme engineering verifier (tunnels), and Committee Member of WG2 (Risk Assessment) PIARC (World Road Association).

• He is frequently invited as a guest speaker to address various topics, including subsurface infrastructure, tunnelling, mining, and underground works in both Australia and overseas.

• On 12 November 2023, a portion of the Silkyara Bend-Barkot tunnel in the Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand, India, collapsed during the construction process. The incident led to the entrapment of 41 workers inside the tunnel. Arnold Dix and his team actively participated in the rescue mission, employing various methods, including micro-tunnelling to reach the trapped workers. These workers, waiting inside the tunnel for rescue, had limited access to food and water. The initial step involved digging a vertical shaft from the top of the hill down to the tunnel to reach the trapped individuals.

• On 28 November 2023, following a successful 17-day Uttarakhand tunnel rescue operation that led to the rescue of all 41 workers, tunnelling expert Arnold Dix expressed his intention to return to the makeshift temple outside the tunnel. He shared the importance of going back to express gratitude. Describing the rescue operation’s success as a ‘miracle,’ Dix acknowledged the collaborative efforts that led to this remarkable achievement. In an interview, he talked about why he offered prayers at the makeshift temple of the local deity Baba Bokh Naag Ji and said,
  

  I have to go to the temple because I promised to say thank you for what happened. If you haven’t noticed, we have just witnessed a miracle.” ^[3]NDTV

  

  Arnold Dix offering prayers at the makeshift temple outside the Silkyara Bend-Barkot tunnel