SARNIA, Ont. – A Sarnia court has ordered Shell Canada Limited to pay a fine of $40,000, while Alberta chemical-cleaning company CEDA International Corporation has been fined $50,000, both for an April 26, 2013 incident in which two CEDA workers collapsed in an oil refinery in Corunna, Ont. That day, they were helping to clean heat-exchanger tubes at the Shell refinery, a process that involved placing the tubes into a vat and filling it with a sulfuric-acid solution, according to a press release from the Ontario Ministry of Labour (MOL). Upon adding the solution, employees present noticed a potent smell, and their hydrogen-sulphide (H2S) monitors began sounding. The two workers in question, who were the closest to the vat, got away from it, but still suffered dizziness and disorientation leading to collapse, with one losing consciousness. A subsequent investigation by the MOL revealed that iron sulfide in the tubes had had a chemical reaction to the solution, releasing H2S into the air. In addition, the workers weren’t aware of the possibility of H2S exposure, nor were they wearing proper protective gear. Shell later pleaded guilty to failing to provide information, instruction and supervision to protect workers’ health and safety; CEDA pleaded guilty to failing to notify workers of the risk of H2S exposure. Justice of the Peace Anna Marie Hampson handed down the fines, plus a surcharge, on April 20 of this year.
