A New Westminster man has been identified as one of two men killed in an industrial accident at a lumber yard in Queensborough last week.
On Monday, the B.C. Coroners Service confirmed the identity of the two men as Guiming Chen, 65, of New Westminster and Yun Zhao Yang, 60, of Surrey.
The two men were killed after being crushed by a load of lumber at the United Gateway Logistics Inc. yard, located at 201 Duncan St.
The exact circumstances of the incident are under investigation by several agencies, including WorkSafeBC and the B.C. Coroners Service.
According to the company’s website, United Gateway Logistics describes itself as a “detailed oriented export lumber reload company offering container reload services with competitive rate.”
But it also appears United Gateway Logistics had run afoul of work place safety regulations in 2015.
WorkSafeBC released a batch of the company’s inspection reports from last year that showed the company had a number of safety infractions.
In one case, an inspection report from March 2, 2015, pointed out on several occasions, including Nov. 6, 2014, and Jan. 9, 2015, forklift operators were observed driving loaded forklifts with the loads elevated. “This is an unsafe work practice that can, and has, resulted in forklift tip-overs causing severe injuries and death,” the report stated.
Another visit by an inspector on July 22, yielded 10 orders from WorkSafeBC including an observation that the employer did not ensure safe movement of workers, other workers (truck drivers, inspectors), and other people, equipment, and materials at this worksite, which is in contravention of the occupational health and safety regulations.
