Ontario's Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development has become involved with the collapse of a trestle support last weekend that's expected to temporarily idle one-quarter of Algoma Steel's workforce.
When SooToday reached out to the MLITSD after the Saturday incident, we were told the following day by spokesperson Kalem McSween that his ministry "was not notified of this incident."
Now, however, a provincial labour inspector has since become involved, SooToday has confirmed.
A second ministry spokesman, Anuradha Dhar, sent us this update:
On Jan. 22, 2024, the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development was notified of a collapse that occurred at Algoma Steel in Sault Ste Marie.
The employer is Algoma Steel.
It was reported that a trestle support that carries a number of piping lines (coke oven gas, natural gas, steam) collapsed, resulting in a section of the piping falling to the ground.
A ministry inspector was assigned and attended the scene.
As the ministry’s investigation is ongoing, we are not able to provide further information at this time.
No one was injured during the Saturday incident, but coke-making was temporarily halted and No. 7 blast furnace was later taken offline.
Ontario's Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks is the lead agency responding to the weekend incident.
National Environmental Emergencies Centre is providing technical and scientific advice.
On Tuesday, Laura Devoni, Algoma Steel's director of corporate affairs and sustainability, said approximately one quarter of the steelmaker's 3,000 employees will be temporarily laid off because of issues related to the structural collapse.