OHS lays 14 charges against Alberta company in death of worker struck by pipe

Alberta Occupational Health and Safety has laid 14 charges against a corrosion protection company after one person died from a workplace injurysouth of Edmonton nearly two years ago.

Court documents show OHS officer and lead investigator Michael Johnston filed the charges against Sonic Coating Solutions Inc. at the Alberta Court of Justice in Edmonton on May 26.

A provincial OHS website says four workers were moving pipe from an abrasive blasting building to a paint shop on Oct. 30, 2021, when a worker was struck by the pipe and fatally injured.

Trent Bancarz, a communications adviser for the ministry of Jobs, Economy and Trade, said the section of pipe fell off a loader.

The worker who died was Realvin Perolina, 54.Hisobituary describes him as a gentle and kind-hearted man who loved music, books, geography and travel. Born in the Philippines, he was married and had three children.

Sonic Coating Solutions Inc. has been charged under the OHS act with failing to:

• Require and enforcethe use of appropriate equipment.
• Prevent a worker from standing close to or under a suspended load.
• Have a safe work procedure for moving pipes between buildings.
• Enforce administrative controls.
• Rig a load in a safe manner.
• Adequately supervising workers.

The employer isalleged to have violated the OHS regulation by not ensuring dangerous work was done by a worker who was competent to do it. The company also faces charges for contraventionsof sixsections of the OHS code.

The charges have not been proven in court.

Sonic Coating Solutions was incorporated in 2013. Its registered office is in Onoway, Alta., about 60 kilometres northwest of Edmonton.

The company did not respond to an interview request.

The employer's first court appearance is scheduled for July 5 at the Leduc Court of Justice.

Workplace deaths claimed the lives of 178 people in Alberta in 2021 and 161 last year.

Gil McGowan, president of the Alberta Federation of Labour, said statistics from the Workers' Compensation Board show increasing rates of lost-time claims and disabling-injury claims over the past few years.

"When it comes to workplace safety, Alberta is not doing well," he said.