A provincial Ministry of Labour inspector has issued 10 citations following an incident Wednesday that resulted in the death of a construction worker.
25-year-old Olivier Bruneau died after he was struck by a falling piece of ice while working on a construction site in Little Italy.
Emergency crews were called to the construction site, at the corner of Preston St. and Carling Ave., around 7:23 a.m. to extract the man from the 100-foot-deep pit where he was working. He was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at the hospital.
The ministry citations ordered the builder, Claridge Homes, to ensure walls of the excavation is stripped of loose rock or other material that may slide, roll, or fall upon a worker. The builder must also submit a plan for review by the Ministry of Labour as to how it will remove ice buildup on the walls of the excavation before workers are allowed on the lower level of the project. Finally, they must provide documentation regarding site plan and safety talks relating to falling ice.
The Ottawa and District Labour Council are calling for a criminal investigation.
For more in-depth coverage, see CBC’s report of the incident at: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/olivier-bruneau-ice-chunk-1.3506250