WorkSafeNB recommends no charges after worker's death at Irving Oil construction site

WorkSafeNB has recommended no charges be laid in the death of a construction worker who suffered fatal injuries in a fall at the Irving Oil headquarters building in Saint John last winter.

The Crown corporation will, however, undertake an awareness campaign about the safe use of ladders, said director of compliance and regulatory review Richard Blais.

There will also be a coroner's inquest into the death of Adam Carleton, 33, of Barnesville. No date has been set.

Carleton, a certified electrician, suffered a head injury while working as an insulator for a subcontractor at the uptown construction site on Feb. 5 and died in hospital the next day.

The WorkSafeNB report is not being made public, but the investigation found Carleton was on a step ladder about three metres high, installing insulation on water pipes, when he fell, said Blais.

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"While he was not working alone, no one saw the fall … so it's really difficult for us to say what caused the fall because there were no eye witnesses to the actual fall."

The step ladder itself was "in good condition, appeared to be the right height for the job" and was "quite stable" with all four legs on a level concrete surface on the fourth floor of the 11-storey building, located at the corner of King Square South and Sydney Street, said Blais.

"It was not slippery and there were no obstructions at all. So everything seemed to be in good order to carry out the work."​

'Sufficient' training

Carleton, who first worked on the Irving Oil building site Jan. 22 to 26, had received the mandatory orientation for new employees and "sufficient" training on the safe use of ladders and fall protection, the investigation found.

As a result, WorkSafeNB, which oversees the implementation and application of New Brunswick's Occupational Health and Safety Act, has "decided not to proceed with prosecution in the file," said Blais.

Asked whether he could think of anything that could have been done differently to prevent Carleton's death, he replied, "Based on what we know, I would say no."

Grandview Insulation Contractor Inc., the subcontractor Carleton was working for, EllisDon and FCC Construction, joint venture partners on the project, and Irving Oil officials, could not immediately be reached for comment.

Carleton's mother, Wendy, also could not immediately be reached for comment.

The family was advised of the results of the WorkSafeNB investigation over the telephone. 

"The officer offered to review the information in person but the family declined," a spokesperson said in an email.

'A lot' of falls in N.B.

The WorkSafeNB report has been shared with both the employer and the coroner's office but is not being released.

"We cannot disclose the whole report because it may have witness statements (and the witnesses names would need to be removed), there may be technical reports by third parties that are privileged information, there may be sensitive information as to how the worker operates (which would be private business info) and a third-party notification would need to be done," acting director of communications Laragh Dooley said in an email.

Details about the planned WorkSafeNB ladder safety awareness campaign are still being worked out, said Blais.

Although WorkSafe has had similar campaigns in the past, it continues to see "a lot of incidents in this regard," he said.

"I wouldn't have the numbers, but certainly we see too many and so we are concerned."

Coroner's investigation ongoing

New Brunswick's coroner services continues to investigate the workplace fatality, said Department of Justice and Public Safety spokeswoman Alexandra Davis.

A date for the coroner's inquest will be set after the investigation is complete, she said.

Under the provincial Coroner's Act, an inquest is mandatory "when a worker dies as a result of an accident occurring in the course of his or her employment at or in a … construction project site."

Davis did not estimate how much longer the coroner's investigation will take.

"A typical coroner's investigation takes anywhere from three to six months or longer, depending on the complexity of the circumstance surrounding a death, how many other agencies may be involved (police, WorkSafeNB, Transport Canada, National Defence, Correctional Services Canada, etc.)," she said in an email.

A coroner's inquest ensures that the public is satisfied that a death in their community is not overlooked, concealed or ignored and focuses public attention on a cause of death if such awareness can prevent future deaths.- Alexandra Davis, Public Safety

A coroner's investigation involves the gathering of scene evidence, the deceased's medical history and the results of any postmortem analysis, such as an autopsy and toxicological analysis to determine the identity of the individual, the cause of death and the manner of death.

The coroner also has to consider if any recommendations should be made to prevent future deaths or injury under similar circumstances, said Davis.

The objective of a coroner's inquest is to determine the same information, but in an public forum where a jury can make recommendations on prevention based on the evidence of experts called to testify.

"A coroner's inquest ensures that the public is satisfied that a death in their community is not overlooked, concealed or ignored and focuses public attention on a cause of death if such awareness can prevent future deaths," said Davis.

Project close to completion

Construction of the new Irving Oil headquarters began in June 2016 after city council pushed through changes to the city's Heritage Development bylaw. The building, which will accommodate about 1,000 employees, was scheduled to be completed by mid-2018.

Irving Oil has not provided an update on when construction is expected to be complete, but the company did tweet earlier this month it's "excited to be in the new home office by the end of the year."

WorkSafeNB issued a stop-work order on Feb. 5 after Carleton fell. The order applied only to the area where he fell to "preserve the evidence" and was lifted later that day.

But the full construction site remained quiet until the morning of Feb. 8.

Carleton, an NBCC and Kennebecasis Valley High School graduate, is remembered as a "devoted son, brother, uncle, cousin, caregiver and friend" who "had a fabulous sense of humour and loved to make people laugh."

In addition to his mother, Carleton is survived by two brothers and several extended family members.