KELOWNA, sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ — RCMP in Kelowna, sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½, have released a statement marking the first anniversary of a deadly construction crane collapse in that city.
The statement says the detachment is "actively investigating" the July 12, 2021, collapse that killed five people, including four workers and a man who was in a nearby building.
RCMP say the "complex" and "technical" criminal investigation is being handled by a team within the detachment's serious crimes unit.
The probe is separate from the regulatory investigation underway by WorkSafeBC, the provincial agency that promotes workplace health and safety.
It released a statement saying its examination of the collapse is aimed at identifying a cause, determining the sequence of events and looking at all available evidence.
The crane was being dismantled at a nearly completed condominium construction site in downtown Kelowna when it came down.
Insp. Beth McAndie, investigative services officer for Kelowna RCMP, says her team is working through a "significant amount of technical evidence" as it searches for any criminality related to the collapse.
“This is a complex investigation of what is being described as one of the largest workplace fatalities in sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½â€™s history," McAndie says in the statement.
Construction workers Cailen Vilness, Jared Zook, and brothers Patrick and Eric Stemmer died at the scene, and a fifth worker was injured.
Brad Zawislak was at work in a nearby office when part of the falling crane crushed the building, killing him.
The North Okanagan Labour Council planned to hold a memorial service for the victims on Tuesday, with a moment of silence to mark the time of the collapse, at roughly 10:45 a.m.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 12, 2022.
The Canadian Press