Shipbuilder faces fine after worker is poisoned with CO

A follow-up inspection in August 2023 also found that a gas alarm had been triggered, going off two minutes after the worker entered the confined space of the vessel. The worker continued working for 40 minutes before leaving the space, even though the alarm should have led to an evacuation of the work area.

The report further states that Seaspan assessed the atmospheric hazard as moderate, not high. Although a standby person was assigned to monitor the tests before entering the site and building, no records of the tests were found.

“The employer stated that the on-call worker had not received any training for the task she was performing,” the report said.

WorkSafe made several orders relating to the workplace health and safety provisions of the Workers Compensation Act. A follow-up report in March 2024 noted that all of its orders and articles had either been compiled or finalised.

“Following the incident at Seaspan Victoria Shipyards last July, we took a number of actions to evaluate and improve our processes and safety culture,” Tony Winter, vice president of Seaspan Victoria Shipyards, said in an emailed statement to CBC News.