A Hamilton-based siding company has been fined $225,000 after two workers died when they failed to move away from a quench tower during a steaming process at a Nanticoke steel plant.
John Kenyon Limited pleaded guilty in Ontario Court of Justice in Cayuga on March 3 to failing to ensure workers followed safety procedures at Stelco’s Lake Erie Works facility. The April 25, 2023 incident killed two employees who were working on siding replacement while positioned 40 feet above ground in a boom lift basket.
The workers died after 30,000 gallons of water poured onto hot coke in a trolley car below them, creating steam that rose through the quench tower and escaped through gaps in the external wall where they were working.
Safety signals ignored twice
The Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development investigation found that ground crew members signalled twice for the boom lift workers to move to safety as the coke oven operation began. The workers in the basket acknowledged the signals but did not move away from the 120-foot metal tower structure.
Ground workers also failed to use emergency controls to move the basket away from danger. They began shouting and sounding a horn only after the trolley car automatically parked at the tower’s base, but by then it was too late to prevent the fatal steam exposure.
The quench tower at the Nanticoke facility acts as a chimney to direct steam produced when water cools hot coke transported by rail from production ovens. Coke serves as both fuel and an agent to convert iron ore into molten iron in blast furnaces.
Company failed safety requirements
During the siding work, Stelco’s coke oven continued normal operations with the trolley system automatically transporting hot coke to the tower. Kenyon workers had established a safety procedure requiring them to move their boom lift to a safe distance for each quenching cycle.
Judge Joseph De Filippis imposed the fine along with a 25 per cent victim surcharge required under the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge goes to a provincial fund that assists crime victims.
The ministry determined the deaths could have been prevented if workers had followed Stelco’s safety procedures and moved the basket away from the quench tower when first signalled.
John Kenyon Limited, located at 54 Munroe Street in Hamilton, specializes in siding design and installation. The company was convicted under section 25(2)(h) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act for failing to take reasonable precautions to ensure worker safety.
