Report finds some B.C. sawmills not being inspected after explosion, fire destroys two

Despite a two-decade slide thanks trade disputes, soft home-construction markets and pine-beetle devastation, the lumber industry is still an important part of British Columbia's economy.

But the Vancouver Sun has turned up evidence provincial government safety regulations covering sawmills are not being fully enforced.

The Sun reported Tuesday that many B.C. mills have gone without fire inspections, which are required by law of all publicly used buildings and are supposed to be done by the local municipality.

The paper surveyed nine B.C. Interior municipalities and found four of them — Mackenzie, Fort St. James, Houston and Williams Lake, which have about a dozen sawmills in their jurisdiction, had not conducted inspections.

The news comes after two mills exploded and burned earlier this year. A fire at Babine Forest Products in Burns Lake killed four workers and left many more injured, while a blast later wrecked the Lakeland Mills sawmill in Prince George.

The Sun previously reported the Babine mill had no fire code inspections because of a gap in regulation.

A senior member of the union that represents workers at the destroyed mills said the situation is not acceptable.

"There has to be something like an immediate inquiry or review with some teeth," Steve Hunt, western director of the United Steelworkers, told the Sun.

A 2010 report for fire and rescue departments in the province warned fire services were badly stretched and that fire inspections and investigations were not being done comprehensively and consistently. The report said many public buildings outside of municipalities were not receiving inspections by qualified inspectors.

Fort St. James fire chief Rob Bennett told the Sun casual walk-throughs of sawmills have happened in the past, but no formal inspections.

"As far as dust control and things like that — absolutely not," Bennett, the only paid firefighter among 33 volunteers, told the Sun.

Wood dust is thought to have been a factor in both the Burns Lake and Prince George explosions.

[ Related: Dust levels flagged before B.C. sawmill explosion ]

The Sun reported that in 2006, the B.C. Liberal government reduced inspection and support at four regional fire commissioner offices to four from 17. One inspector based in Prince George covers all of northern B.C.

Mackenzie mayor Stephanie Killam said her community's fire department had not conducted sawmill inspections because lumber firms told them their insurance providers did it.

"With smaller communities, companies tend to do their own thing," she told the Sun, adding her fire department now will be carrying out its own inspections.

WorkSafeBC is leading an investigation into the two explosions but has said the B.C. fire commissioner's office is the main authority on fires and the risk of dust explosions in mills, the Sun said.

Deputy fire commissioner Kelly Gilday said he's become aware some municipalities have not been inspecting mills but that it's not up to his office to ensure the inspections are done. His office is prepared to help smaller communities, he added.

"One of the big things that's being missed is the No. 1 player who is responsible for this is the owner-operator-occupier of the mill site, and they are there every day," Gilday told the Sun.

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Meanwhile, CBC News reported Monday the owner of the Burns Lake mill, which employed 250 people before it burned down, plans to rebuild it, assuming certain conditions are met.

A B.C. government news release said owner Hampton Affiliates needs to work out a deal with the community of Burns Lake and local First Nations regarding a supply of logs that would justify rebuilding the mill.

If an agreement is reached, the new mill could be up and running as early as 2014, CBC News said. However, it would be smaller and utilize more automated technology, and the new facility would employ only about half the number of workers, the company said.