The death of a 16-year-old worker in a sawmill accident has resulted in a $225,000 fine being levied against a northwestern Ontario forest products company.
Long Lake Forest Products, operators of Nakina Forest Products, pleaded guilty for failing to ensure a conveyor's exposed tail pulley was equipped with a guarding device.
Bruce Pelletier, 16, died Feb. 1 2001 while working at the Nakina sawmill, 70 kilometres north of Geraldton. He was assigned to shovel sawdust and small wood pieces onto a moving block incline conveyor, which feeds pieces to other conveyors. He was later found near the conveyor's exposed tail pulley, a large rotating drum-shaped roller.
He was taken to a Geraldton hospital where he was pronounced dead. A Ministry of Labour investigation determined Pelletier had died after suffering a blow to the jaw when his shovel became caught between the tail pulley and the conveyor belt. A broken-off shovel handle was located a few feet away.
No one witnessed the accident.
Judy Im, a ministry lawyer, says the trial, which was set for five days in Geraldton, came to a quick conclusion June 16 after some negotiations. Long Lake Forest Products pleaded guilty to one count of failing to have a guarding device on an exposed moving part.
Justice of the Peace Gordon Buterin heard oral arguments as to the appropriate fine. The defence counsel asked for a range of $50,000 to $100,000 while the Crown asked for $275,000.
Two other charges, failing to take responsible precaution in terms of having guarding device and failing to have an emergency stop control within easy reach of workers using the conveyor, were withdrawn.
Im says the company has 30 days to appeal the fine. There was no word of the company's plans.
