On 3 June 2020, pan No.9 at Farleigh Mill imploded, causing the top cone of the pan to collapse into the pan body and come to rest on the calandria. The incident occurred during steam trials when boiling water under vacuum conditions. Severe damage was caused to the entire pan above the calandria, including the vapour ducting, the vapour condenser, pan stirrer and ancillary equipment at the top of the pan. Some damage was caused to the calandria. Fortunately, no people were injured. Following the implosion, the factory was shut down and the area around pan No.9 made secure. Workplace Health and Safety Queensland were notified of the incident. A full incident investigation was undertaken, which resulted in root cause analysis workshop sessions and several reports being completed. The event took place in the week preceding crush and a recovery plan was instituted to bring the pan back to service in the shortest period to minimise the disruption to the 2020 season. The failure of the top cone was attributed to corrosion-induced thinning of the cone plate. The thinning of the steel plate compromised the structural integrity of the cone, causing it to fail (buckle) and then collapse into the body of the pan. The addition of more testing points, in the high corrosion areas, will provide advanced warning of metal thinning for vessels at risk of implosion. Key words Pan, vacuum, implosion, failure, investigation