Perry family hopes inquest can prevent future fatalities

Stephen Perry's daughter hopes the 10 recommendations a five-person jury made at the end of an inquest into his death will ensure other families don't have to go through the loss she has experienced.

“It's been very difficult,” said Brittany Boyd-Perry. “I feel nobody should have to go through it.”

Perry was killed on Jan. 29, 2012, when a 14-tonne wedge of rock dislodged from the 36 West rock face at the 4,215-foot level of Vale's Coleman Mine and struck him in the head and chest.

The jury determined Thursday the death was accidental.

Over three days of testimony, witnesses said Perry and his experienced colleagues followed all the rules and procedures in place to protect their safety at the time.

But to ensure those regulations and best practices are safer, the jury made 10 recommendations, that ranged from requiring ground control engineers assess support at every rock face in a mine, to amending Ministry of Labour regulations around miners working alone.

“I'm very happy with the recommendations,” said Boyd-Perry.

Throughout the inquest, Perry's colleagues spoke highly of his work ethic and commitment to safety when working underground.

“He was a great man,” his daughter said. “He worked hard, and was a great example of someone who worked really safe.”

One of the more important recommendations for the family was that Ontario's inquest process be reviewed to shorten the time frames between fatalities and mining inquest start dates.

In his testimony on Tuesday, Feb. 23, Ministry of Labour inspector Shaun Carter said he has participated in seven inquests during his career, and it was not uncommon for four years or more to pass after the person's death, before an inquest had begun.

“The quicker the inquest happens, the less you have to rehash this stuff,” said Tom Perry, Stephen Perry's brother. “Four years is a ridiculously long time.”

Tom said the family was initially told it would take around two years after his brother's death for the inquest to start, but that timeline doubled.

“We're just so happy it's over,” Tom said. “The recommendations just blew our minds. We're just so happy for the mining community. It's very unlikely anybody will be hurt at the face anymore.”

Rick Bertrand, president of United Steelworkers Local 6500, said he was also happy with the jury's 10 recommendations and hopes they can get implemented as soon as possible.

After Perry's death, the United Steelworkers and Vale conducted a joint investigation, and tabled 16 recommendations to improve safety at Vale's mine.

Inquest witnesses said Vale has implemented all but one of the recommendations. The final recommendation is in development.
One of the bigger changes was a policy for Vale's workers to bolt and mesh rock faces prior to drilling.

In early 2012, Vale used heavy bolts and steel mesh to secure the walls and ceilings along its mine drifts, but did not secure the rock faces – where miners extracted the ore – in the same way.

Vale believed at the time that not bolting the face would minimize workers' time spent in that area, therefore creating a safer work environment.

Chris Bamberger, the operating manager at Coleman Mine, said during his testimony that bolting and meshing the rock face would probably have saved Perry's life.

After the inquest concluded, Vale's vice-president of Ontario operations, Stuart Harshaw, said the company intends to take the jury's recommendations very seriously.

Harshaw said it was too early to say how feasible it would be to implement all the relevant recommendations.

The jury's 10 recommendations were:

1. It is recommended to the Ontario Ministry of Labour that regulations for mines and mining plants be amended to require each underground mine in Ontario have an assessment by a ground control engineer specific to supporting faces in each mine. It is requested that this recommendation be dealt with through the Mining Legislative Review Committee (MLRC) subcommittee on ground control.

2. It is recommended to the Ontario Ministry of Labour that they form an MLRC subcommittee on technology with the mandate of investigating technology such as, but not limited to remote loading.

3. It is recommended to the Ontario Ministry of Labour that legislation be amended in regards to working alone. We strongly feel that the mere presence of a radio does not remove the dangers of working alone. This provision should be removed from legislation.

4. It is recommended to all underground mines that a committee be established to examine potential options in improving underground emergency vehicles or first aid work (e.g. CPR) and that the emergency vehicles be equipped with their own first aid kids pursuant to section 281.2 subsection (2) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act and regulations for mines and mining plants.

5. It is recommended to the Ontario Ministry of Labour that advanced level first aid training for all supervisors at underground mines be obligatory and it is recommended that a mine rescue worker be available on every shift.

6. It is recommended to the Ontario Ministry of Labour and all mines that an AED (automated external defibrillator) be available at refuge stations and encourage more personnel be trained.

7. It is recommended to the Ontario Ministry of Labour and all mines establish a working group to conduct a risk assessment with a view to improving lighting options for the ANFO loader.

8. It is recommended to the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services that the inquest process be reviewed to shorten time frames between fatalities in mining and inquest start dates.

9. It is recommended to all mines that safety systems be reviewed to allow them to be more proactive.

10. It is recommended to all mines that the communication systems be improved.