University tightens rules around field work in wake of researcher’s death

Maya Bhatia was flying by helicopter over Jackman Glacier near Grise Fiord in the High Arctic on Aug. 16, 2023, when she saw a stream of water and made the split-second decision that would end her life.

The University of Alberta researcher asked the pilot to land so she could take a sample of water from the glacier.

The pilot agreed, but due to the conditions couldn’t land the helicopter. Bhatia descended onto the massive sheet of ice without proper safety equipment like crampons, which are spikes attached to the shoes for traction, and with no ice axe, harness, ropes or carabiners, the kind of hooks used with ropes in rock climbing.

Minutes later, Bhatia slipped into the stream she was collecting water from. She was pulled more than two kilometres through the rushing water before falling into a vertical shaft estimated to be 20 metres deep.

She was presumed dead in the days after her disappearance. Her body was never recovered.

Bhatia made the decision to deviate from the day’s plan, which included collecting water samples from around the glacier but not on it, without discussing it with her colleagues or an assessment of the risks involved, an Oct. 26, 2023, University of Alberta investigation report into the incident concluded.

“In the field, you know, the pressure of being able to publish more, to get more funds, and oceanography is a competitive discipline as well — that’s the kind of discussion that probably needs to happen,” David Didier, who wrote a witness statement for the investigation, said in an interview.

Didier was one of the researchers in the field that day, and took part in a frantic search-and-rescue mission after Bhatia disappeared into the glacier.

The investigation report and the Aug. 24, 2023, witness statement were released in March under Nunavut’s access to information law.

Didier’s statement describes a frantic scene where he and a colleague ran across the glacier, struggling to stay upright despite the crampons they were wearing, and calling out Bhatia’s name. Didier eventually crawled up to the vertical shaft and looked into its two-metre mouth. All he could see inside it was darkness.

He blamed pressure from time constraints, the cost of field research, and competition for resources among scientists for creating environments where risks are taken.

Under different circumstances, Didier said, Bhatia might have not taken the risk.

“You know when you need to press the helicopter hours, because you know, you only have a couple of days, and then it’s so expensive,” he said.

A witness in the death of research scientist Maya Bhatia near Grise Fiord in 2023, says researchers face a lot of pressure, time constraints and fatigue out in the field, which can sometimes lead to risk taking. (Photo courtesy of David Didier)

The University of Alberta is changing its procedures in response to 14 recommendations included in the investigation report.

One of those recommendations is auditing daily field records to identify any gaps in safety protocols.

“Things change. Things are going to change,” said Michelle Rooker, director of health, safety and environment for the University of Alberta.

“You may get stuck by weather for a couple of days, things that are happening beyond your control, and part of the challenge is to recognize that and to put mechanisms in place to kind of protect against that.”

Other recommendations in the report include:

• confirmation of a lead during shared research projects who will have all responsibility for safety decisions;
• an annual field research training day to maintain and review safety standards on a regular basis;
• ensuring adequate personal protective gear and other equipment is always available;
• and development of safe work practices for working near bodies of water.

Arctic field research is a highly regimented process, with risk assessments, strict daily plans which should not be deviated from, and meticulous record keeping of the day’s events and safety concerns, the report noted.

Rooker said all but one of the recommendations — a centralized method for tracking enhanced safety training — has been implemented prior to the April 2024 research season.