Inquest told of final moments of worker
An inquest in Sudbury has heard that a New Brunswick miner spent his final moments struggling to breathe after being buried by wet, muddy muck while working underground at the Lac des Iles Mine northwest of Thunder Bay.
Edouard Gallant, 64, of Dunlop, N.B., died on May 27, 2020, while working for Sudbury-based SCR Mining and Tunnelling. He had been contracted by mine owner Impala Canada to assist in repairing ore passes, near-vertical tunnels used to move blasted rock.
On Sept. 22, inquest counsel Jai Dhar outlined the events that led to Gallant’s death. Dhar said workers stood on muck inside the ore passes while spraying the walls with shotcrete, a type of sprayed concrete. After completing each section, the muck was drawn down to expose the next six feet of wall.
The work proceeded without issue until the day of the incident, Dhar said. When crews attempted to lower the muck pile, the material did not move as expected. Suddenly, it dropped, overwhelming protective gates and flooding a loading pocket where Gallant was stationed.
“The material from the ore pass flowed into the loading pocket, partially burying Mr. Gallant and pinning him against a steel railing,” Dhar told the jury. Rescue efforts were immediate, but Gallant could not be saved. He was pronounced dead in the ambulance.
Unusually muddy
Witnesses described the muck as unusually muddy and wet. Fellow miner and longtime friend Charles Laforge testified, “I’ve worked in mines for 42 years. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Northern Ontario Business reported that underground foreman Derek Wilkins of Impala also testified, describing the rescue attempts. He said Laforge’s quick thinking to use a water hose helped clear the muck. “The muck, it wasn’t rocks where we could grab them and throw the rocks away,” Wilkins said. “It was basically trying to shovel through it.”
A pathologist determined Gallant died from positional asphyxia caused by the pressure of being pinned.
Jurors in the inquest will answer five mandatory questions about Gallant’s death and may provide recommendations aimed at preventing future incidents. Dhar reminded jurors that inquests do not assign blame but seek to improve safety.
Impala Canada was fined $350,000 in 2023 for Gallant’s death and another serious incident at the mine. The Lac des Iles Mine is scheduled to close in May 2026 due to falling palladium prices.
Gallant, a husband, father and grandfather, had worked in mining for more than 30 years.
