The Mines and Aggregates Safety and Health Association (MASHA) and Ontario Mine Rescue crowned mine rescuers from Vale Inco’s East Mine operation with gold hard hats following the 49th annual provincial mine rescue competition in Windsor on June 5 and 6.
The event marked the 80th anniversary of Ontario Mine Rescue, established the year after the Hollinger Mine Fire claimed the lives of 39 miners in Timmins in 1928.
During the simulation, the six-member teams had to extinguish a fire, find six missing miners, treat their injuries, use extrication equipment to release one trapped miner, and return all miners to the surface. The rescue operation was conducted while using rebreathing apparatus while in a 460-foot tunnel filled with dense smoke.
Competing mine rescue teams represented Canadian Gypsum Co., Southern; Goldcorp Canada Musselwhite Mine, Red Lake; Hemlo Operations, Thunder Bay/Algoma; Goldcorp Canada Porcupine Gold Mines, Timmins/Kirkland Lake; FNX Mining Co., Onaping and Vale Inco, East Mines, Sudbury. Vale Inco East Mine's team of captain Chad Vinkle, Will Davies, Bruno Fortin, Jean Yves
Doiron, Lawrence Plouffe, vice-captain Greg MacMillan, and briefing officer Corey Tryon
won the overall competition, as well as the Team Special Equipment Award.
.jpeg;w=120;h=80;mode=crop)
