BY KEITH LACEY
A coroner's inquest jury heard Thursday a mining contractor killed on the job three years ago returned to work the day after suffering a seizure three months before he was killed.
Robert MacLeod, 46, was a supervisor with Dynatec Corp. when he fell 30 feet to his death down a Galloway in the number five shaft at Garson Mine on Oct. 30, 2003.
A Galloway is a large cylindrical device which allows mining companies to transport employees, equipment and ore from underground to surface.
Gerry Guillemette, a supervisor for Dynatec who was just recently hired, but who has more than 32 years of experience in mining and health and safety, testified MacLeod returned to work July 14, 2003, the day after suffering a diabetic seizure and collapsing at work.
During that incident July 13, MacLeod was rushed to hospital after collapsing in front of co-workers at Garson Mine.
Besides having a doctor's note, management asked MacLeod how he felt when he returned to work the next day and MacLeod responded he felt fine and Dynatec management decided he should return to full duty, said Guillemette.
Previous witnesses testified MacLeod suffered another seizure on June 1 at work, but didn't have to be rushed to hospital on that occasion.
Guillemette testified MacLeod got doctors' notes on both occasions which indicated his health was fine and he would be able to perform his regular duties.
It's believed that on the day he died, MacLeod suffered a third seizure, which resulted in him losing his balance. He fell 30 feet and landed on top of a huge "clam" used to dig up ore from the bottom of the Galloway.
Dynatec is a mining contractor used often by Inco to blast ore at various underground operations in Greater Sudbury. MacLeod, who is originally from Nova Scotia, had worked for Dynatec for several years.
From talking to other supervisors and gathering information to testify at the inquest, Guillemette testified records show MacLeod was a talented, hard working, and safety-conscious employee.
He graduated from the common core training program in the late 1980s and had a 93 percent final score for testing to become a mining supervisor, said Guillemette.
While he just started with the company, he says Dynatec is committed to health and safety at all times and holds daily safety meetings as well as group meetings on a regular basis.
A comprehensive monthly safety meeting is also held on long-term projects, he said.
The contract to mine the number five shaft at Garson Mine started in early 2003 and was scheduled to last two years, he said.
MacLeod was wearing a fall arrest system when his body was found by co-workers, said Guillemette.
MacLeod did not have to "tie off" his fall arrest system because Dynatec policy is to tie off six feet from any open hole and it's believed MacLeod was outside that range and inside a guarded rail system during the time before he fell, he said.
A coroner's inquest in mandatory in all mining deaths in Ontario.
Lawyers for Inco, the Ministry of Labour and assistant Crown attorney Len Walker were scheduled to present closing submissions Thursday afternoon.
