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Canadian Natural Resources (CNR) may have another regulatory fire to put out as it faces work stoppage while investigators probe the cause of an explosion Thursday, Jan. 6, that injured five workers at the company's Horizon oilsands site near Fort McKay First Nation in Northern Alberta.
Sorcha Thomas, an OHS spokesperson for the Alberta Ministry of Employment and Immigration told COS that health and safety investigation is still underway and that the probe "will take as long as necessary" to ensure the safety of the workers. As of Tuesday, Jan.11, however, the government has issued a "partial removal" of the stop-work order to allow CNR's own personnel access to certain parts of the mine that have been deemed safe to assess damage, Thomas said.
The incident occurred at 3:30 p.m. MT when an explosion occurred inside a coker, a facility that uses heat to convert bitumen into crude oil, sending the almost 150-metre high structure up in flames. The blaze was eventually contained to the coker area before finally being extinguished around 7:15 p.m, according to a CBC news report.
Two workers were injured directly by the blast, with one suffering second- and third-degree burns and the other first-degree burns. A third worker was treated for shock and two other workers were stricken with back and leg injuries, respectively. One of the workers is still being treated at an Edmonton Hospital, where he remains in stable condition.
Provincial health and safety officers are currently investigating the cause of the blast to determine if any safety infractions were committed. In a press statement, CNR indicated that it is also continuing its own investigation of the cause of the explosion.
While CNR is hopeful the stop-work order will be lifted sooner rather than later, it is
Sorcha Thomas, an OHS spokesperson for the Alberta Ministry of Employment and Immigration told COS that health and safety investigation is still underway and that the probe "will take as long as necessary" to ensure the safety of the workers. As of Tuesday, Jan.11, however, the government has issued a "partial removal" of the stop-work order to allow CNR's own personnel access to certain parts of the mine that have been deemed safe to assess damage, Thomas said.
The incident occurred at 3:30 p.m. MT when an explosion occurred inside a coker, a facility that uses heat to convert bitumen into crude oil, sending the almost 150-metre high structure up in flames. The blaze was eventually contained to the coker area before finally being extinguished around 7:15 p.m, according to a CBC news report.
Two workers were injured directly by the blast, with one suffering second- and third-degree burns and the other first-degree burns. A third worker was treated for shock and two other workers were stricken with back and leg injuries, respectively. One of the workers is still being treated at an Edmonton Hospital, where he remains in stable condition.
Provincial health and safety officers are currently investigating the cause of the blast to determine if any safety infractions were committed. In a press statement, CNR indicated that it is also continuing its own investigation of the cause of the explosion.
While CNR is hopeful the stop-work order will be lifted sooner rather than later, it is
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