:: rawblogXport ::

:: Thursday, July 13, 2006 ::

Logging deaths greatly reduced this year - by Gordon Hamilton, Vancouver Sun
(page 1:) So far this year, six have been killed; 21 had died by this time last year.

But there are still questions about how deeply safety awareness has percolated into the forests and sawmills of B.C.

The dramatic drop in the number of fatalities is not reflected by the number of serious injuries, according to the B.C. Forestry Safety Council.
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(page2:) In 2005, safety fell through the cracks, largely a consequence of massive de-regulation, with contractors replacing company workers.
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(page3:) But public outrage over the death toll brought what Steelworker's official Darrel Wong dubbed "B.C.'s dirty little secret," out into the open.
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(page 4:) Faller and safety advocate Bill Boardman also said the key is to keeping awareness high. He summed up the differences between 2005 and 2006 with a logger's cynicism:

"This is what I put it down to: The woods are either hungry or they are not. Last year, they were fed well. We have one really bad year and everyone wakes up for a while. But from what I have seen, more deaths are going to come. I hope not. But time will tell."

posted 7:40 AM :: reference link :: 0 comments ::

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