Essar Algoma Steel Fined after Workers Killed and Injured
Worker Killed, Another Injured: Essar Steel Algoma Inc. Fined $325,000 Total
October 12, 2010
SAULT STE. MARIE, ON – Essar Steel Algoma Inc. was fined $300,000 today for a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) that caused a worker’s death. The company was fined another $25,000 for a different OHSA violation after a worker was injured in a separate incident.
On July 31, 2008, at the company’s steel mill in Sault Ste Marie, a worker was doing routine maintenance on a truck. As the worker was checking the battery, it exploded, splattering liquid in the worker’s face. The worker attempted to use the emergency eyewash fountain, but it was not working.
Essar Steel Algoma Inc. pleaded guilty to failing to maintain an eyewash fountain and deluge shower in good condition.
In a separate incident at the mill on October 30, 2008, three workers were doing a pre-start check on a conveyor system used to pile rocks. The maintenance team believed the system was empty, but toward the end of the check material appeared on the conveyor above one of the workers. The material, weighing over 125 kilograms, fell onto the worker, killing him.
Essar Steel Algoma Inc. pleaded guilty to failing to ensure appropriate overhead guarding was in place to prevent falling material from injuring a worker.
The fines were imposed by Justice of the Peace Patricia Tennant. In addition to the fines, the court imposed a 25-per-cent victim fine surcharge, as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime.
Court Information at a Glance
Location: Ontario Court of Justice
426 Queen St. E.
Sault Ste Marie, ON
Judge: Justice of the Peace Patricia Tennant
Date of Conviction: October 12, 2010
Defendants: Essar Steel Algoma Inc.
Matter: Occupational Health and Safety
Conviction: OHSA, Section 25(1)(b)
Ontario Regulation 851, Section 34(b)
Crown Counsel: Wes Wilson
