Transportation Department fined after covered bridge collapse

The Department of Transportation and Infrastructure was fined Thursday and put on probation after pleadingguilty in connection with the collapse of a century-old covered bridge under the weight of an excavator.

The department was convicted in Saint John provincial court this week of violating the Occupational Health and Safety Act.

Thedecking of the Hammond River bridge near Quispamsis collapsed Oct. 5, 2016, under an overweight excavator contracted by the province.

The operator was transported to hospital but was uninjured.

On Tuesday, Judge Andrew Palmer ordered the government to pay $80,000 to the University of New Brunswick's workplace health and safety officer certification program by April 26. The money will be used for the "advancement, education, and training in the prevention of workplace accidents," the court order said.

The department was also put on a 30-day probation and must conduct an internal audit as well as develop a template for safe bridge maintenance and construction. The template will be submitted to WorkSafeNB, which laid charges in October 2017.

Departmentresponds

The Transportation Department was charged with failing to take every reasonable precaution to ensure the health and safety of its employees and with failing to ensure the health and safety of anyone having access to the project site.

Department spokesman Jeremy Trevors said in emailed statement Thursday that the government collaborated on a joint sentence.

"The safety of New Brunswickers, including those working on our job sites, is a top priority of the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure," Trevors said.

"In the months since the incident in question, DTI has developed a comprehensive code of practice and worked with WorkSafeNB to improve our safety techniques."

The 104-year-old covered bridge in French Village could not be repaired and has since been demolished and replaced with a modular bridge.

The bridge is on Route 860 at the end of French Village Road in southern New Brunswick.

The historic bridge had a weight limit of 12 tonnes, according to a posted sign. The 312C L excavator is listed as weighing more than 13 tonnes on the manufacturer's website.

It was carrying a heavy load of wood at the time.