On the day of the one-year anniversary of the Kelowna crane collapse that killed five people, RCMP is announcing that its Serious Crimes Unit remains involved in the incident and continues to investigate the case.
On July 11, WorkSafeBC also announced its involvement in the investigation into the crane that collapsed in downtown Kelowna on the 1400-block of St. Paul Street.
WorkSafeBC commented that the incident investigation report is “well advanced” – however, there is still no specific date or time as to when the report will be completed and publicly available.
“This is a complex investigation of what is being described as one of the largest workplace fatalities in B.C.’s history,” said Inspector Beth McAndie, Kelowna RCMP Investigative Services Officer. “There is a significant amount of technical evidence for my team to analyze.”
The RCMP investigation is separate from WorkSafeBC’s investigation.
The collapse caused the evacuation of downtown and the city was forced to call a local state of emergency shortly after the incident.
The specialized heavy urban rescue team of first responders was dispatched from Vancouver to assist with the debris.
Four of the five victims were identified as construction workers on the site. Brothers Eric and Patrick Stemmer, of the family-owned Stemmer Construction that operated the crane on-site, while the other two victims were identified as Jared Zook and Cailen Vilness.
The fifth man, Brad Zawislak, who was not working construction at the site, but instead next door in an office, also died when the crane crashed into his building.
The public is invited to a memorial for the deceased today at 10 a.m. at the site at Bernard Ave. and Ellis St.
READ MORE: Single lane traffic moving on Highway 97 in Peachland after early morning crash
READ MORE: Former UBCO student prez running for Kelowna council
@cunninghamjordy
jordy.cunningham@kelownacapnews.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
