Safety-related charges laid in Sabina mine death
Worker died after machine fell through ice near Bathurst Inlet in January 2022
Sabina Gold & Silver is one of four companies charged with violating Nunavut’s workplace safety law after a worker died at the company’s Back River gold mine near Bathurst Inlet, seen in this undated file photo, in Nunavut in January 2022. The Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commission announced the charges last week, about a year after the worker’s death. (File photo)
Four companies face numerous charges related to the death of a worker at Sabina Gold & Silver’s Back River mining project a year ago in January 2022.
Sabina Gold & Silver Corp., Matrix Aviation Solutions Inc., Matrix Kitikmeot Ltd., and Gallant Restorations Inc. were “charged with multiple counts alleging violations” of Nunavut’s Safety Act and the Mine Health and Safety Act, the Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commission announced last week.
The charges stem from an incident on Jan. 17, 2022. In a news release issued a little more than a year after the worker’s death, the safety commission indicated that on that date work was being done on a winter ice road near Bathurst Inlet.
At one point, the ice broke and the machine and the man operating it fell through the sea ice. The worker died.
The worker’s name was not released.
The charges allege a failure to implement and maintain workplace practices, failure to ensure the health and safety of all persons at the worksite and neglecting or refusing to provide information relating to the safety investigation, as well as other possible offences, the commission said.
The commission provided no further comment.
The first court appearance is set for March 6 in Iqaluit.
Condolences to the family of the decease, heart-breaking to read this.