A year after five men died in the sinking of a crane at a construction site in Kelowna, BC, police and occupational safety investigators are still looking for evidence of what happened and why.
While the families of the dead workers marked the gloomy anniversary, some said that while waiting for answers has been frustrating, they are willing to be patient if a long investigation also means a thorough investigation.
“I’m more than willing to wait,” Chris Vilness said.
Her son, Cailen Vilness, 23, was murdered the first day back at work after spending a holiday visiting family in her hometown of Kitimat. BC
Vilness said he just wants all the facts.
“We know the mechanics of what happened to this tower, but we’re still not sure much of the rest,” he said.
“I want to know who is responsible.”
Police say investigation is “complex”
On the morning of July 12, 2021, the arm of a crane fell about 25 stories while it was being dismantled on the site of a residential tower under construction by real estate company Mission Group. It crashed into a neighboring office building and a nursing home.
Four construction workers were killed: Cailen Vilness, Jared Zook and brothers Eric and Patrick Stemmer. Brad Zawislak, who worked in the office building, also died. A fifth construction worker was injured in the sinking.
Kelowna’s RCMP says its investigation into what happened has been handed over to a team dedicated to the serious crime unit.
“This is a complex investigation of what is described as one of the largest workplace fatalities in BC history. There is a significant amount of technical evidence to analyze my team,” insp. Kelowna RCMP. Beth McAndie said in a press release.
The cranes rise above the construction site where five men died in a crane collapse in Kelowna, BC, on July 12, 2021. At the site fence a monument can be seen to those who go lose your life. (Winston Szeto / CBC)
WorkSafeBC says its researchers have spent the past year consulting with experts and engineers and reviewing tests of the scene.
There is no timeline for when it will be completed, but Jessica Berglund, director of occupational safety and health research at WorkSafe BC, said Tuesday that most of the work is done and that researchers “are about to ‘finish’.
A parallel investigation by the BC Coroners Service is also still open.
The Northern Okanagan Labor Council held a memorial service for the victims on Tuesday, with a moment of silence to mark the time of the collapse, at approximately 10:45 p.m.
Mission Group said it would stop work at all of its construction sites for an hour at a time and commemorated the workers killed with five blows of an air horn.
At a first anniversary memorial in Kelowna on July 12, 2022, candles are lit in front of photographs of Jared Zook and Brad Zawislak, two of the five men killed in a collapse of a construction crane in 2021. ( Winston Szeto / CBC)
Speaking at the memorial, Kelly Hutchinson, vice chair of the labor council, encouraged everyone to wait for the investigations to be completed before drawing any conclusions. But he said that when the research bodies publish their results, everyone in the construction sector should be taken seriously.
“This could have been any of you at any point in your life. Accidents don’t discriminate and you end up paying the final price just to go to work,” Hutchinson told the crowd.
“This is unacceptable and therefore we need to do better. I call on the whole industry and its workers to do it.”
‘My heart is broken; my mind is trying to catch up ‘
The last year has been difficult for the families of the men who died.
Zook’s parents, Pam and Steven Zook, spoke at the memorial on Tuesday and described how their Christian faith has helped them overcome the loss of their 32-year-old son.
“It goes against the natural order of life for a father to bury a child, whether a baby, 10, 23, 28, 32 or 44. They are still your child. The pain remains the same , ”Steven Zook said.
“When your child is caught, your soul receives a blow that many parents find difficult to recover. Statistics will show that some do not.”
Vilness’s mother, Danielle Pritchett, said she doesn’t think she will ever come to terms with what happened, and struggled to find the words to describe what it’s like to realize her son has been gone for a year.
“There are no words to say what’s going through your head, because it’s more what’s going through your heart. The mind doesn’t really commit to the fact that my son is gone forever. My heart is broken; my mind is trying to catch up. on everything that has happened, “he said.
Cailen Vilness is shown sitting on a construction crane in a family photo. The 23-year-old was one of four construction workers who died in the crane sinking in Kelowna, BC, on July 12, 2021. (Submitted by Danielle Pritchett)
Chris Vilness said he hopes the tragedy will lead to changes in regulation and training, to ensure workers are always safe.
“I understand that there are always limitations on money and schedules, but it should never be at the expense of worker safety,” he said.
“People are not going to work to give their lives.”