AIM charged with workplace safety violation at Point Lepreau

A Saint John metal-recycling plant is going to court after an employee steered an arm of a truck into power lines at the Point Lepreau nuclear power plant.

Representatives from American Iron and Metal Inc. are scheduled to appear in Saint John provincial court Monday to answer to a charge of failing to make sure all employees carrying out work are qualified.

The charge falls under the provincial Occupational Health and Safety Act. The charge sheet filed with the court says the case stems from an incident on Dec. 3, 2021, in Maces Bay, where the boom, an extendable arm, of a truck carrying recyclable materials came in contact with high-voltage lines.

AIM has been under scrutiny for several years because of explosions at its west side scrapyard next to the harbour in Saint John, and because of deaths at the site. Most recently, this July, employee Darrel Richards died from workplace injuries, the second person to die on the job at AIM within seven months.

The charge related to the Maces Bay incident alleges AIM failed to make sure that "an employee who is not a qualified person does not carry out any work that is liable to bring any person or object closer than 3.6 m to an energized electrical utility line."

WorkSafeNB spokesperson Laragh Dooley said in an email no one was injured.

"Since this is currently before the court, we will not be conducting an interview," Dooley wrote. 

She said WorkSafeNB continues to investigate the July fatality at the AIM facility. 

Dooley has not yet responded to a question about whether the investigation has concluded in the case of the first AIM fatality in November 2021.

Dooley said the WorkSafeNB investigation into the Point Lepreau incident started in December and ended on Feb. 25, 2022, and the charge stems from the findings of the investigation.

She said WorkSafeNB did not issue a stop-work order regarding the December 2021 incident.

According to the act, if found guilty, the company could face a maximum fine of $250,000.

Reached by phone Thursday, Herbert Black, the CEO of American Iron and Metal, said he's on holiday and does not know of the charge and therefore would not have a comment.

"I have no idea at the moment. You're catching me at a bad time," he said. 

When asked if there was another spokesperson or anyone knowledgeable of the incident who could comment, he said he did not know.