Jury: Fix Mine Safety Regs - By Francis Plourde, TheTyee.ca, Canada
The first to enter the shed was Doug Erickson on May 15. He was taking weekly samples and breathed the oxygen-depleted air coming from the pipe. He was found two days after his disappearance. While trying to rescue him, Bob Newcombe also collapsed and fell into the bottom of the shaft and died.
Before attempting to rescue his colleague, he had time to call 911. The dispatch centre didn't understand the accident had happened in a confined area on a mine site.
When paramedic Kim Weitzel went into the shed, guided by a Teck Cominco contractor, she thought she was responding to a drowning. She wasn't told about the risks of gas and lost consciousness almost immediately. Her co-worker, Shawn Currier, then rushed to help her, and died in the same circumstances.