UPDATED - Mines still closed after fatal accident

Updated on Feb. 1 at 1:22 p.m.

Several local politicians are offering condolences to the family of 47-year-old Stephen Perry, who was killed in an accident at Vale's Coleman Mine Jan. 29.

“On behalf of the members of council and all of the citizens of the City of Greater Sudbury, I offer my condolences to the family, friends and co-workers of the individual,” Mayor Marianne Matichuk said, in a press release.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with them during this difficult time.”

Nickel Belt MP Claude Gravelle and Sudbury MP Glenn Thibeault also issued a press release about Perry's death.

“As a former employee of a mining company, I know firsthand how dangerous it is to work underground,” Gravelle said, in the press release.

“At the end of the day, all a miner wants to do is earn a good living and go home to his family. My heart goes out to his family and his co-workers.”

“This is an extremely tragic incident, and the second in the last year to affect the region,” Thibeault said.

“At this very difficult time, my thoughts and prayers are with the victim`s families, friends, co-workers, and other members of the community as they try to cope with this shocking and devastating loss.”

The MPs said in the press release they welcome the investigations of the accident which are underway, and that they want workplace safety to be the top priority in any final recommendations.

Original Story

 

All of Vale's Sudbury mines remained idle as of Northern Life's noon deadline Feb. 1 after an accident which killed a miner at the company's Coleman Mine last weekend.

Vale spokesperson Danica Pagnutti said the company has “no defined timelines” for when it will reopen its mines.

“Our focus remains on safety, not production,” she said.

Kelly Strong, Vale's North Atlantic operations vice-president of mining and milling and general manager of Ontario operations, said at a Jan. 30 press conference Vale decided to take a “step back, or pause,” after the accident.

He said the company is currently putting an action plan in place to ensure employees are safe when they return to work.

This is the second halt in mining activity the city has seen in recent months. Back in November, Xstrata sent hundreds of workers home for a several-day “safety pause” after there was an increase in accidents.

Stephen “Steve” Joseph Perry, the miner killed in the Jan. 29 incident, was “skilled and experienced and highly respected by his fellow employees,” Strong said.

“His loss will be felt deeply at Coleman Mine, across our other mines and in all of our operations,” he said.

Perry, 47, is remembered in his obituary for his love of sports.

“He was an avid golfer and a member of the Chelmsford Golf Club,” the obituary said. “He enjoyed all sports from soccer to hockey.”

He is survived by his daughter, Brittany Boyd-Perry of Chelmsford, and 12 brothers and sisters. He was born in Corner Brook, Newfoundland, and had worked at Vale for the past 16 years.

The company's critical stress management team is offering support to the man's family, friends and coworkers, Strong said.

The Ministry of Labour and Greater Sudbury Police are investigating the incident.

Vale and Steelworkers Local 6500, the union which represents the company's miners, normally conduct joint investigations into workplace accidents.

However, when two miners were killed at the company's Stobie Mine last June, the two parties were unable to agree about how the investigation should be conducted, and opted to conduct separate investigations.

Pagnutti said the company “can't comment yet” on whether or not there will be a joint investigation into Perry's death.

Local 6500 president Rick Bertrand was not immediately available for comment on the issue.

Perry was killed at the 4,215 foot level of Vale's Coleman Mine after rock became displaced from the face of the development drift where he was working.

Vale isn't sure what caused the rock to become displaced.

“At this time, it's too early to understand what the mechanism of failure was,” Strong said at the Jan. 30 press conference. One of the possible ways the rock could have become displaced is seismic activity, he said.

Perry was working alone in the drift, using a piece of equipment called an “Anfo loader” to load explosives into the face of the rock.

The fact that he was loading explosives at the time of the accident had nothing to do with his death, Strong said.

Just last week, Vale released the results of their investigation into last year's fatal accident at Stobie Mine. Strong said the recommendations released as part of that investigation don't really apply to the latest death.

“Those two incidents are very different,” he said. “They're not related as far as the activites are concerned.”

Posted by Arron Pickard