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Look before pointing fingers

Re: Lakeland Mills First we had Work Safe BC pointing their fingers at Babine Forest Products with talk about charges for the unfortunate explosion at their Burns Lake Mill and then we had the same situation at Lakeland Mill.

Re: Lakeland Mills

First we had Work Safe BC pointing their fingers at Babine Forest Products with talk about charges for the unfortunate explosion at their Burns Lake Mill and then we had the same situation at Lakeland Mill.

Work Safe BC has within their organization, people who are responsible for the safety of the work force within our province. They take care of petroleum explorations and refining, Logging and every other industry that hires workers and that includes grain elevators.

I would assume that within this organization they have people who realize the potential for accelerated combustion, when you are dealing with petroleum products or even wheat dust in grain elevators so why then didn’t they see the potential for a problem when efficient sawmills, producing very fine, dry, pine sawdust, that probably be impregnated with dry pine sap, couldn’t see it as a source of combustion.

I can understand how this could have been an over sight at Babine Forest Products, but I wonder why, after it happened, there weren’t red flags flying in every mill in the province, cutting bug kill wood?

I understand the mandate of Work Safe BC is to inspect every work place’s in B.C., where workers are hired, making sure they have a safe work place.

Maybe they should be looking within their own organization before pointing fingers.

Mel McConaghy

Prince George