Inquest jury in Sudbury miner’s death calls for tighter rules in operating rock drills

Photos of the Gardner Denver SCH2500 Rock Drill that was operated by Mark Beskorowany on Aug. 19, 2019, at a rock quarry in River Valley. (Inquest photos)

An inquest jury that heard testimony this month about how a Sudbury miner was killed by a sliding rock drill in 2019 has come back with several recommendations to prevent future tragedies.

The coroner’s inquest, mandatory under provincial regulations, examined the details of the August 2019 death of Mark Beskorowany at a surface rock quarry in River Valley, outside of Sudbury.

It emerged that the drill Beskorowany was operating had him standing on a platform with no protection. And a misreading of the safety manual by the contractor he worked for, Consbec, meant workers were told the drill could be operated safely at angles of 35 degrees before it needed to be secured by a winch to prevent sliding.

In fact, the limit was 10.9 degrees. When the drill moved downward on the rockface, the slope suddenly dropped from 10 degrees to more than 19 degrees, causing the track to lose contact with the surface.

When the track made contact again, it began sliding down the rock before tipping over. Beskorowany jumped from the machine, but failed to clear it. It landed on the lower part of his body, crushing him.

He died in hospital two days later, on Aug. 21, 2019.

Worksite inspections

The inquest jury recommended that the Ministry of Labour, Training, Immigration and Skills Development inspect multiple Consbec worksites to ensure the safety procedures in place adequately assess “risk assessments related to tramming rock drills on sloped surfaces.”

The jury also recommended that mining regulations be reviewed to ensure they protect workers from the danger of “uncontrolled movement of a drill.”

“This review is to include the development of an industry-wide safety certification standard for rock drills,” the recommendation said.

“The review will include a proposed date wherein all rock drills sold, purchased, manufactured, imported, or operated in Ontario meet an industry-wide safety standard with features included but not limited to, rollover cages, remote control options, etc.”

Supervisors should also be required to examine areas where drilling and blasting are to take place and to update basic training for miners to cover “safe work procedures for operating and tramming a drill on sloped surfaces and develop refresher training modules for workers who are already in the industry.”

Recommendations for the Infrastructure Health and Safety Associationare include working with the Surface Mining and Aggregates Working Group to update procedures for tramming sloped surfaces.

“Continue to promptly inform the surface mining and aggregates industry when it is notified or becomes aware of a critical injury or fatality within the sector,” the recommendation said.

“Where appropriate and permitted, share available information and direct industry stakeholders to relevant resources, tools and best practices aimed at preventing similar incidents.”

The full list of recommendations will be posted here when they are available.