A demolition and excavating company in Chatham has pleaded guilty and was fined $70,000 for failing to protect a worker before they died on the job.
On Tuesday, the Ministry of Labour said a worker at James Curran Expert Removal & Excavating Limited died after falling from the upper level of an old building that was being demolished, and the company failed to ensure that the worker was adequately protected by "a method of fall protection" when exposed to a fall of more than three metres, contrary to section 25(1)(c) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
The ministry reported Justice of the Peace Susan Hoffman found that James Curran Expert Removal & Excavating Limited didn't adequately protect the worker with a safety device when a guardrail wasn't practical to install, as required by section 26.1(2) of Ontario Regulation 213/91 and contrary to section 25(1)(c) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
The ministry noted the worker fell off a ladder while removing an old hopper from the building previously used as a grain silo when one half of the hopper dropped suddenly and fell to the platform.
The worker fell off ladder, over the edge of the platform, ended up on the ground below, and suffered fatal injuries, according to ministry officials.
The ministry also said the worker was on a platform approximately 7.62 metres above the ground and the platform had holes in the floor and unguarded openings around three sides.
