Excerpt from the government of Ontario’s ‘Newsroom’
A worker was injured falling into a vehicle service pit. McDougall Energy Inc. failed to implement measures to protect a worker, as required under section 13(3) of the Regulation for Industrial Establishments, contrary to section 25(1)(c) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
McDougall Energy Inc., doing business as Dowler-Karn, is an employer that distributes energy products and are from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
A truck driver was dispatched from Dowler-Karn’s Sarnia branch to deliver fuel, but their vehicle began experiencing mechanical problems due to ice build up on the brakes.
One of the company’s mobile technicians was sent to meet the driver and temporarily fixed the problem so the truck could make the delivery. Following the delivery, the driver drove the truck to the company’s service shop in St. Thomas for further repairs.
The service shop has multiple work bays in which vehicles are repaired and maintained, including an in-ground vehicle service pit in work bay three. The pit is 70 feet long, 42 inches wide and 64 inches deep. At the time of the incident, the pit was not in use and did not have a barricade or technician monitoring it to prevent workers from falling in.
To complete the repair on the trailer, the truck and trailer were separated and the trailer was parked in work bay four, next to the bay with the pit. The driver later came in to check on the progress of the repairs.
At that time, a senior technician was repairing an air leak in the upper safety rails on the top of the trailer and asked other workers to identify which rail was moving.
The truck driver tried to assist but had to take several steps backwards to see the top of the trailer and accidently fell four and half feet into the adjacent vehicle service pit. The driver suffered several injuries from the fall.
Following a guilty plea in the Ontario Court of Justice, St. Thomas, McDougall Energy Inc. was fined $70,000 by Justice of the Peace Susan Whelan. The Crown Counsel was Judy L. Chan.
The court also 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.
My opinion
The law(s) in contravention:
McDougall Energy Inc. was found guilty of a contravention of the ‘Industrial Establishment’ sector regulation 851/90, section 13, subsection 3 which states,
(3) “If there is no guardrail in a situation described in subsection (2), an employer shall develop and implement other measures and procedures to protect workers from the hazard of falling.”
This is contrary to section 25, subsection 1(c) of the Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA), which states,
“An employer shall ensure that,
(c) the measures and procedures prescribed are carried out in the workplace.”
As explained, the reader can see clearly the event taking place. The driver needed to step back to see the railing to determine which one the technician needed to fix. Too bad he was not made aware of the fall hazard right behind him.
HRS Group Inc. has a great team that can help you with all your health and safety needs including ‘Fall Protection’.
Contact Deborah toll free at 1-877-907-7744 or locally at 705-749-1259.
We can also be reached at info@hrsgroup.com
Ensure your workplace is a safe place.
Remember – In Ontario, “ALL Accidents are Preventable”
‘Work’ and ‘Play’ safe.
Daniel L. Beal
CHSEP – Advanced Level
CEO & Senior Trainer
HRS Group Inc.