Coroner’s jury rules deaths of two mill workers in Burns Lake, B.C., accidental

VANCOUVER – A coroner’s jury has ruled the deaths of two mill workers caught in a fiery explosion in Burns Lake, B.C., more than three years were accidental.

Forty-five-year-old Robert Luggi and 42-year-old Carl Charlie were working at Babine Forest Products in the community 225 kilometres west of Prince George, when the explosion occurred Jan. 20, 2012.

A coroner’s jury heard from nearly 50 witnesses over the 13-day inquest while sitting in Burns Lake.

The jury deliberated for two days and made 33 recommendations, while the e coroner made an additional eight recommendations.

The jury suggested that the company install a fire-pumping system at its mill, have a stand-alone first aid facility, that the company ensure compliance in the National Fire Code and that a combustible gas monitor be used when workers report gas smells.

A WorkSafeBC investigation concluded an accumulation of wood dust was a major factor in the blast.