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Richmond recycling company fined $2.5K in forklift rollover incident

Lack of instruction, supervision, consultation and safe work practices among high-risk violations for business.
forklift
Stock image of a fork lift operator working.

A Richmond recycling business has been fined $2,500 after a worker sustained serious injuries in a forklift incident in April.

WorkSafeBC responded to an incident on April 3 at Mitchell Metal Recycling Ltd. where a worker was injured while using a forklift to move a roll-off bin with a chain attached to the bin and the forklift's carriage.

The forklift rolled over while the worker was reversing across a sloped shoulder.

The provincial agency fined the business for multiple high-risk violations, including not following the user manual or consulting with the manufacturer before the work task and having no safe work procedure in place.

"The firm failed to ensure its equipment was used and operated in accordance with safe work practices, failed to ensure the design and use of its forklift met applicable standards, and failed to ensure that load-handling attachments were installed on mobile equipment as specified by the manufacturer," said WorkSafeBC's website.

It added Mitchell Metal Recycling failed to make sure its workplace was "planned, constructed, used and maintained" to protect its workers from danger.

"In addition, the firm failed to provide its workers with the information, instruction, training and supervision necessary to ensure their health and safety, a repeated violation."

The fine was issued to the business on June 27.

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