One Logger Doing Battle With a 10 Billion Dollar Company

Brian Fitzpatrick is a friend mine. He posts in the HEF under "fitzpatrick"...usually in the forestry section.

His son was killed at the Kiewit Toba/Montrose project in 2009.

Controversy swirled around the circumstances of the incident. Less than 24hrs before, a rock fall caused by an excavator working above other workers, caused 65,000 dollars in damage and no injuries. The job was shut down and procedures reviewed. A ban on machines working above other workers was put in place.

The very next day, there were two...not one, but two excavators working above the area where Sam Fitzpatrick was hand drilling a boulder. A large multi thousand pound rock came down from an as yet unspecified area and made a direct hit on Sam, killing him instantly. The incident occurred right in front of his brother Arlen, and several others that were all good friends.

Kiewit was fined 250,000 dollars in 2011 for Sam's death at Toba. Kiewit appealed the fine, and Brian went to work with his own counter-appeal. Kiewit lost the first appeal and has made a second and last appeal which is being reviewed right now.

In the link below is an update ( Dec30/2012 ) in the Province newspaper on Brian Fitzpatricks battle for justice in his son's death
http://adventuresinmikeslife.blogspot.ca/2012/12/dec30-update-on-brian-fitzpatricks.html

Best of luck that he gets a proper and fair result.

Thanks, we continue to reinforce the case almost weekly. A lot of people have come forward to assist Brian in whatever way possible....really stepped up to the plate.
Nice to see humanity operating according to the users manual.

What happened to that supervisor that put the hoes working above them (Jerry) did he ever end up getting canned or what?

Jerry was the earthworks supervisor on seg 3 on S2S am I right?

Yup. Jerry was at Seg3, worked on the Darrell Bay cut, I believe, then got parachuted into Seg 1. After a bit of a turbulent time there he got transfered to Toba. After Sam's death, Jerry shipped out back to Montana. Jerry's old buddy and Kiewit executive VP, **** Colf ( the main man behind the S2S, Gateway and Toba bids ) took retirement around the same time.

Best of luck, can't be of much help apart from that.

I guess may be he gets a fair deal and may law be on his side. This incident shows how unfair life can be. Life is so important, how can it be so fragile?!!

Thanks Merry. We are expecting an answer from the Worksafe appeals tribunal on or around March 25th. Brian ( Sam's dad ) is taking this case to anyone who will listen...steel workers union, provincial and federal gov't, BCFED...and academics working in labour law. He won't rest without a positive resolution.

That very comforting to hear and know about.