The one year anniversary of the Babine Forest Products mill explosion is approaching. On Jan. 20, 2012, an explosion tore through the building, injuring 19 and killing two.
When asked to describe the horrific scene that January evening, fire chief Jim McBride said, “I have never seen the devastation that I witnessed last night. When I arrived, the mill was completely engulfed in flames. It was devastation. Chaos reigned supreme.”
Burns Lake Band Chief Albert Gerow commended the efforts that evening of emergency response personal and Hampton employees to get injured people to the hospital.
“I spent the evening at the hospital and I can tell you they were working under incredible odds,” said Gerow. There were 19 injured at the hospital within four hours. They were all triaged locally and sent to Prince George, then assessed and sent on to other hospitals. There was also a foot of snow that fell in Burns Lake last night and the airport could not be used to airlift patients due to the weather.”
Emergency services arrived from Fraser Lake, Vanderhoof, and Houston to assist the Burns Lake Ambulance Service. Despite the extra help from across the region, some mill employees helped one another get to hospital in private vehicles.
Just as the community came together that evening help one another, the community continued to support the workers displaced by the tragedy. A Burns Lake Tragedy Fund Society was established. Over $750,000 was raised through donations.
Local First Nations were hit particularly hard, with Lake Babine Nation having 66 workers at the mill, including one who lost his life. A Wet’suwet’en man also lost his life. Chief Wilf Adam and the Lake Babine Nation council worked hard to find a solution to the timber supply issues that challenged any decision to rebuild the mill.
Member of legislative assembly, John Rustad worked relentlessly with provincial counterparts, the Village Burns Lake, the Regional District of Bulkley Nechako, First Nations and Hampton Affiliates over the following year. Unprecedented community forest licenses and controversial forest management procedures were considered in order to facilitate a new mill in Burns Lake.
Ultimately, Hampton Affiliates was able to declare that they would be rebuilding the Babine Forest Products mill starting in the spring of 2013. Foundation work was already underway before the announcement was made, but it was never a foregone conclusion.
The community of Burns Lake responded with relief to the decision, but with the construction of a new and modern mill still at least a year away from production, concerns remain as to how the remaining displaced workers will survive now that their employment insurance benefits are expiring.
“We cannot loose site of this,” said Adam. “The new mill is still over a year away and need to find any employment for the ones who can work. We need the services to help the ones who were injured physically and mentally.”
Hampton Affiliates and the Burns Lake Native Development Corporation hare hosting a Remembrance Memorial Service on Jan. 20, 2013 for family and employees of Babine Forest Products at the Lakes District Secondary School.