Lakeland Mills Explosion Update
PG Fire Rescue still battling Lakeland Mills fire this morning
Prince George, BC – Firefighters are said to have made excellent progress this morning in extinguishing the blaze that continues to burn at Lakeland Mills following last night’s explosion and fire that killed one mill worker and injured 23 others.
Prince George RCMP Media Relations Officers, Corporal Craig Douglass, says the number of employees working at the mill has now been confirmed as 49, rather than the initial 50 reported. Douglass says all 25 employees working in the planer mill were uninjured. The blast and ensuing fire hit the sawmill in a seperate area of the Lakeland property along River Road. A total of 24 employees had been working in that area and were transported to hospital with injuries ranging in severity from smoke inhalation to severe burns.
One person died in hospital at 5:30 this morning. Four have been transferred to burn units in Vancouver, Victoria and Edmonton. Another six remain in serious condition in the University Hospital of Northern BC.
RCMP, the BC Coroner’s Service, and fire investigators with Prince George Fire Rescue have begun the investigation into the cause of last night’s devastation. Corporal Douglass says fire fighters have managed to douse most of the flames that were still burning inside the sawmill this morning.
"The only area that is still burning is wood contained in the rough-sawn lumber in the sorter bins on the west side of the sawmill building," he says.
"The next steps include working closely with Worksafe BC to ensure the scene is safe for investigators to begin fire cause determination."
Douglass says family members of patients that remain at UHNBC can contact 250-565-2339 for information. Northern Health continues to post updates on its website at www.northernhealth.ca
The RCMP’s Victim Services was on-scene through the night last night assisting the victims and their families affected by this tragedy. Douglass adds that anyone in the community feeling they may need emotional support or assistance during this tragic time can call Victim Services at 250-561-3329.
Comments
Just finished chatting with a friend from Mackenzie who said the mills there are going down for clean-up….this is 3 mills in a very short period of time….Work Safe needs to step up to the plate and start making these mills hire more people back on clean-up crews….
Probably decided on the whim to shut them down for spring cleanup after 2 mills exploded.
The first thing mills cut back on is clean up personel. There can’t be a dust explosion if things are vented properly and kept clean. We don’t know if this was a dust explosion but not much else can cause a boom in a sawmill.
Just before Rustads was shutdown there was a dust explosion in what they called the Barker Building. The fireball went around the room twice. It caused bolts to be blown out of the bolt bins in the Millwrights room above the barker. No one was injured but if there was anyone in the room at the time they would of been severely burned or killed. It never hit the news and the good ole boys tried to sweep it under the carpet.
This is terrible. My heart goes out to those injured. Burns are horrible.
Dust explosions have a massive amount of power, as the local pellet plant knows only too well. One minor explosion can become a series of bigger ones as the extremely fine dust on the building perlins becomes airborne.
Although the cause has not yet be determined I’m sure mills all around will be cleaning up. I just hope they don’t make the mistake of using an air hose to clean the beams, perlins, etc as if they get enough dust airborne it would only take one spark to cause another disaster.
Wood dust, grain dust etc can be just as volatile as sugar dust in the video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jg7mLSG-Yws
That is exactly what mills are doing right now using highschool kids to blow down the walls and ceiling. It is so dusty you cant see a foot infront of you. Its crazy. My heart and prayers go out to the crew at lakeland a great bunch of people.
Comments for this article are closed.