Lack of training, safety instructions resulted in man’s death in Montreal North: Quebec workers’ safety board

Quebec’s workers’ health and safety board, the Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST), says a lack of training, safety instructions, protective equipment and methods resulted in an incident that killed one worker and injured two others in Montreal North.

This comes after, on Sept. 23, 2023, the concrete floor of the ground floor of a three-storey building collapsed on workers who were demolishing load-bearing walls in the basement.

In its report, published shortly before the holidays, the CNESST noted that “none of the workers had the required qualifications to perform work on a construction site.”

They had also not undergone the mandatory health and safety training for construction sites.

Inspectors noted that the workers had not received any safety instructions and were not wearing safety boots, helmets, goggles or gloves at the time.

“The workers are handling debris of all kinds with their bare hands,” the report stated.

It also pointed to a lack of work organization and planning.

“No temporary shoring was installed under the ground floor to support the slabs when the load-bearing walls were removed,” the report continued, resulting in “widespread collapse of the floor.”

One worker died, a second suffered injuries to his lower body and a third was injured on his arm.

–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews