Guelph-based Linamar Corp. fined $200K after worker burned by fireball

Guelph-based Linamar Corp. has been fined $200,000 after one of its employees was burned by a fireball at one of its facilities in October 2018.

The auto parts manufacturer pleaded guilty on Dec. 9 for failing to ensure the worker wore “adequate skin protection from radiant heat.”

A notice from the Ministry of Labour stated that the worker was in the process of opening a furnace door to remove parts when a fireball erupted.

The worker was not wearing sufficient protective equipment and suffered burn injuries.

The ministry noted that a fire curtain, which maintains a controlled environment inside the furnace when the door is open, was not lit.

Without the fire curtain, oxygen from outside the furnace mixes with the gas inside, which can be explosive.

The ministry believes a downdraft of air through the exhaust ventilation of the furnace blew out the pilot light for the fire curtain.

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The extent of the injuries to the worker was not detailed and it’s not known if that person has returned to work.

The Occupational Health and Safety Act states that the employer must ensure that the regulations are followed at the workplace.

Linamar has two prior convictions — it was fined $225,000 after a fatality in 2005 and fined $100,000 after a critical injury in August 2008.