Metro Vancouver has been fined about $170,000 after a worker was seriously injured during "high-risk violations" while working on a water main in New Westminster two years ago.
WorkSafeBC says in a news release that it issued the penalty to the regional district on March 12 after one of two workers helping lift gearboxes off a water main valve was injured when one gearbox "released and lifted forcefully upward."
It says the gearboxes were being lifted out of a confined space using a crane, and the workers were inside the space using pry bars, on March 15, 2024.
WorkSafeBC says it identified several high-risk violations, including a failure to plan and identify hazards before conducting the operation.
The board says Metro Vancouver did not make sure health and safety activities were co-ordinated and also failed to develop written procedures to on reduce the risks working in confined spaces.
The violations also included the lack of an adequately trained supervisor on-site, and the workers' lack of adequate training in such situations.
Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
