Joe McKay will never forget the explosion at the Westray mine 30 years ago today.
An underground explosion in Plymouth, NA, killed 26 miners. One of them was McKay’s brother, Mike.
“He loved his bikes, including the helicopter he was just thinking about,” McKay said. “He loved his family. His children meant everything to him.”
Mike McKay was 38. He was the father of two young children.
Like the other men working at the mine, he worked there only nine months after it opened in September 1991.
The names of all 26 men killed in the Westray mine blast appear in rays of light shining from a mining lamp on the Westray Miners Memorial Park. (Paul Palmeter / CBC)
A spark from a coal-cutting machine ignited a leak of methane gas in the mine shaft, which mixed with coal dust to cause the explosion.
The bodies of 11 miners were never found. Among those buried was McKay.
“My only delay was that my other brother had to go to work at the mine that night, and he changed his mind and canceled his shift,” said Joe McKay. “If it wasn’t for that, he’d be down there, too.”
There will be a hike on Monday at 6pm, starting at the Bluenose Curling Club and ending at the Westray Miners Memorial Park, where there will be a memorial service and a celebration of life.
There will be an information program for high school students during the day focused on the impact of the Westray disaster on workplace safety rules in Nova Scotia.
Mike McKay, pictured on his motorcycle, was one of 26 men killed in the Westray disaster. (Submitted by Joe McKay)
Many Picto County high school students will take part in person at the Stellarton Museum of Industry. Other students in the province will be able to join the live broadcast.
“We will have about 40 high school students coming and they will hear from various speakers about the history of the mine and what their rights are when it comes to health and safety at work,” said Danny Cavanagh, president of the Nova Scotia Labor Federation.
Prior to the blast, officials, union officials and government inspectors expressed several safety concerns. The incident led to changes in legislation on how corporations are held criminally liable for deaths and injuries in the workplace.
Commonly referred to as the Westray Act, Bill C-45 came into force in 2004.
“Unfortunately, no charges of criminal negligence have been filed in the first 10 years since the bill was passed,” Kavanagh said. “I do not think the bill is doing what it is intended to do, and we are still working on it.
Joe McKay is pictured in front of the monument. (Paul Palmeter / CBC)
The families of the dead miners have filed a $ 30 million lawsuit against the province of Nova Scotia. But the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia rejected it, ruling that the province is protected from lawsuits under the Workers’ Compensation Act.
The company that operates the mine, Curragh Resources, was initially charged with 52 non-criminal charges of operating a dangerous mine. The company went bankrupt in 1993.
The charges were then dropped after a judge from Nova Scotia criticized the way they were raised. The case was returned for consideration, but was dismissed again. Then the Supreme Court of Canada ordered a new trial.
Charges of criminal negligence and manslaughter were leveled against mine managers Gerald Phillips and Roger Paris, but they turned out to be meaningless when the Crown dropped the case, saying there was not enough evidence to secure a conviction.
Clifford Frame, founder and CEO of Curragh, refused to testify in a public inquiry, as did Marvin Pelly, a former Westray president. The investigation lacked federal authority, which meant that summonses could not be enforced outside of Nova Scotia, leaving company employees safe at their Toronto headquarters.
The Westray disaster: 25 years later
Mourners in Nova Scotia mark the anniversary of an underground explosion that killed 26 coal miners. The effects of the disaster are still being felt at 9:57
Rays of light
In the months after the disaster, Joe McKay was one of the people who insisted on building a memorial. Trees were planted in the park, one for each of the 26 victims.
The names of the victims appear in rays of light that shine from a mining lamp on the monument in the center of the park.
McKay says May 9 will be the day he always comes with his little brother.
“If I’m still alive for the 40th anniversary, then I’ll be there for it,” said McKay, now 73. “It’s something the family believes it does and makes us feel a little closer to our people.”
Add Comment