Firm admits to fatal workplace safety breach
Springhill Construction Ltd. had faced prospect of trial for criminal negligence causing death of worker Michael Anthony Henderson, 18, in August 2018 in Fredericton
A Fredericton construction company facing a count of criminal negligence in the death of an employee has admitted to a provincial offence under the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
The Fredericton Police Force had previously laid a charge of criminal negligence causing death against Springhill Construction Ltd. stemming from the death of Michael Anthony Henderson while he was in the firm’s employ.
Henderson, 18, drowned at the bottom of an eight-foot hole when a safety plug came loose and pinned him as the hole quickly filled with water during a leak test Aug. 16, 2018, at a project at City of Fredericton’s Barker Street Wastewater Treatment Plant.
Springhill had previously elected to be tried in the Court of King’s Bench by a judge alone, and its trial had been scheduled for January.
However, the company re-elected last month to be tried in provincial court, with the consent of the Crown, and the matter was back on the lower court docket Monday.
Defence lawyer Clarence Bennett - appearing in court by video - entered a guilty plea on the company’s behalf, but not on the criminal negligence causing death allegation.
Instead, he said his client admitted to a charge under Section 47(1) of the provincial Occupational Health and Safety Act that the business failed to provide training necessary to ensure an employee’s health and safety..
Springhill and its former site supervisor, Jason Andrew King, had originally faced Occupational Health and Safety Act charges from WorkSafeNB stemming from Henderson’s death, but those counts were withdrawn and replaced with the criminal counts.
Monday’s proceedings appeared to revert Springhill’s case back into a matter overseen by WorkSafeNB rather than the city police force.
Judge Jeff Lantz, chief judge of the P.E.I. provincial court, presided over Monday’s proceeding by video, and he set the matter over to Dec. 15 for sentencing to allow for the preparation of victim-impact statements.
It’s expected the Crown will withdraw the criminal-negligence charge at the conclusion of the sentencing hearing next month.
Foreman convicted on criminal count
King, 46, of Upper Hainesville - who was working as the supervisor in charge of site safety on the day in question - also opted for a trial by King’s Bench judge alone on his criminal-negligence charge, and Justice Thomas Christie convicted him on that count earlier this year.
He sentenced King in September to three years in prison, though King’s lawyer has filed a notice of appeal, and he was released last month on conditions pending the outcome of his appeal.
During King’s trial, court heard Henderson was at the bottom of the hole over the lunch hour, cleaning up debris as directed, when an inflatable plug holding back water flow came loose.
The weight of the plug and power of the water pressure pinned the teenage worker to the side of the hole.
As the hole filled with water, Henderson’s older brother Eric, who was also employed on the worksite, tried to rescue him, but to no avail.
King testified at his trial that he hadn’t reviewed any of the safety manuals on site, noting that he wasn’t much of a reader.
He ordered a water test to the line feeding to the hole despite knowing Henderson was likely going to be working in it, and his plan in case of an incident - just to get someone to haul him out of the hole - was grossly insufficient, Christie ruled.
King testified Springhill hadn’t provided him with training when it made him a site foreman, and he wasn’t up to the task of fulfilling the supervisory and safety requirements of the position.
King was terminated from Springhill’s employ shortly after the fatal incident.
Don MacPherson can be contacted at ftonindependent@gmail.com.