Vancouver Island construction company fined after worker hit by excavator
File photo from WorkSafeBCWorkSafeBC has issued three Vancouver Island construction companies fines for separate incidents including a worker being hit by an excavator, and another falling from a balcony. In. . .
File photo from WorkSafeBCWorkSafeBC has issued three Vancouver Island construction companies fines for separate incidents including a worker being hit by an excavator, and another falling from a balcony. In July, three companies in Ucluelet, Nanaimo and Brentwood Bay were fined for work safety issues. Ridgeline Mechanical Ltd. in Ucluelet had the largest fine of the three of $17,593. 16. In this incident, Ridgeline was building a water treatment plant and a worker was hit by an excavator and seriously injured. As a result, WorkSafeBC was called to inspect the site. The inspection determined the work site did not have safe work procedures in place for working around obstructed views or pedestrians. Additionally, the excavator operater had not been provided safe operation instructions. “The firm failed to provide its workers with the information, instruction, training, and supervision necessary to ensure their health and safety,” WorkSafeBC said in anincident summary. “This was a high-risk violation. ”In Nanaimo, United Roofing (BC) Inc. was fined $12,824. 17 after a worker fell from a balcony. The worker was cleaning and removing debris from a roof surface when they fell from a fifth-storey balcony onto a fouth-storey balcony and was injured. WorkSafeBC inspected the worksite and determined the anchor that the worker’s lifeline was connected to was not positioned in a way to minimize the degree of a swing fall hazard. WorkSafeBC also determined that United Roofing had failed to ensure an effective fall protection system was used, and failed to ensure that it had a written fall protection plan and that the workers were instructed on the protection system and procedures. “The firm also failed to provide its workers with the information, instruction, training, and supervision necessary to ensure their health and safety,” WorkSafeBC said in an incident summary. “These were all high-risk violations. ”The incident summary notes that a request for review of the decision has been received. The final Vancouver Island company to be fined was Arise Roofing Ltd. in Brentwood Bay. Arise received a fine of $2,732. 94 for a lack of fall protection in place. WorkSafeBC inspected the site, where three workers were on the sloped roof, and noted there was no fall protection in place, exposing the workers to fall risks of up to 7. 6 metres (25 feet). WorkSafeBC notes this is a repeated violation to fail to ensure fall protection was used. Arise also failed to have a written fall protection plan in place. Once again, WorkSafeBC described the incident as “high-risk violations. ”“The firm also failed to provide its workers with the information, instruction, training, and supervision necessary to ensure their health and safety,” the report summary from WorkSafeBC says. Between 2021 and 2025, a total of 34,942serious injury claims were filed with WorkSafeBC. The most common accident type was “struck by” with 7,450 claims. “Fall on same level” comes in second with 6,777 claims, then fall from elevation with 5,523 claims. READ MORE:WorkSafeBC urges young workers to turn to supervisors, not AI, for safety adviceWorkSafeBC fines Island contractor nearly $22K after fatal worksite incidentLaura has been working with CHEK since 2021 and is a graduate from Langara College’s journalism program. Previously she has worked at Page One Publishing and CFAX 1070. Municipal politics, housing. . . More by Laura Brougham