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Waste management company Ssonix, directors face 84 charges for St. Catharines fire: officials

Click to play video: 'One man killed in St. Catharines’ factory explosion'
One man killed in St. Catharines’ factory explosion
Officials in St. Catharines confirmed that a 30-year-old man who lived in the city was killed in a factory explosion on Thursday morning. Ahmar Khan reports. – Jan 13, 2023

A hazardous waste management company and its directors are facing 84 charges after a fire at a St. Catharines, Ont., waste plant earlier this year killed a worker and led to the evacuation of nearby homes.

St. Catharines Fire Services says it has laid the charges under the Fire Protection and Prevention Act against Ssonix Products 2010 Inc. and its three directors, with each facing 21 counts.

The City of St. Catharines says the accused are expected to appear in court by the end of this month to address the charges.

Ssonix owner Steve Baker declined to comment on the charges.

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Ryan Konkin, 37, was inside the Ssonix facility in St. Catharines on Jan. 12 when explosions and a fire broke out just after 6:30 a.m.

Konkin suffered serious burns to his body when he opened up a door to the plant and was hit by flames.

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He was taken to hospital, where he later died.

The fire led to the evacuation of several homes and businesses in the area with close to 11.5 million litres of douse water needed to contain the large blaze.

Niagara Region Ministry of the Environment supervisor Taylor Buck told residents at a community meeting later in March, that the fire broke out just days before a routine inspection.

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