In September 2015, Cecile Paquette was struck and killed by a grader doing road work at Elgin and Beech streets.
She died because the contractor hired by the city did not follow health and safety guidelines. Last March, Interpaving was fined $195,000 for not providing a signaller for the grader.
Prior to the accident, city inspectors had raised safety concerns at the site. These were not acted on by Interpaving.
The recent court ruling found that the city was not the constructor or employer and, therefore, not responsible for health and safety. The City of Greater Sudbury has been cleared of all charges it faced under the Occupational Health and Safety Act in the 2015 death of Cecile Paquette.
The question remains, what needs to change to ensure this doesn’t happen again?
The city hired a contractor to do roadwork. Safety concerns were observed and raised. The city followed all the rules and met all their legal obligations, but someone lost their life. The only conclusion is that the rules need to change.
This site was known to be dangerous. This death was avoidable.
What changes are needed to ensure road work sites are safe, that health and safety guidelines are followed, and that when safety concerns are reported, they are fixed immediately or work is stopped? What improvements could be made to city policies and contracts? What changes are needed in provincial policy that the city and others could advocate for?
In response to the court decision, the mayor stated “The City of Greater Sudbury respects the decision of the court in this matter and will continue to comply with all applicable legislation relating to health and safety.”
I hope to also see a statement and action on improving policy and practices so this never happens again.
Naomi Grant
Co-chair, Coalition for a Liveable Sudbury