“Eventually the RCMP came to me and told me that they have decided that this is no longer a rescue. It is now a recovery.” Danielle Pritchett fought to tears as she shared the horrific day she lost her son Cailen Vilness in the deadly crane collapse on July 12 last year. Vilness was one of four young construction workers killed when a crane collapsed while descending. The crane arm hit another building, next to the multi-storey building, killing another man working in the building. In addition to Vilness, Jared Zook and brothers Patrick and Eric Stemmer died while working on the spot, while a fifth victim, Brad Zawislak, was crushed and killed when a crane struck the adjacent building. Dozens gathered in Ben Lee Park on Thursday afternoon to mark National Mourning Day and hear Pritchett share what she had in her heart. Vilness died at the age of 24. “I died that day when I lost my son. I died, a part of me died that day. And what I want to share with you that is very important for everyone to hear is that my son was such a safety advocate. a safe workplace and a safe work environment. “ Pritchett says that when her son was a construction worker, he was forced to do the job in an unsafe way. “He was telling me about the transgressions he would see, about the pressure he would receive. Even from his own Forman. I told him, Caylen, you can refuse the dangerous job and no one will fire you.” Pritchett says Vilness began advocating for workplace safety and was expelled from his community. “He was fired from his bosses, from the foreman, from the company, he was even demoted to work because he indicated precarious work,” he said. Although Pritchett did not confirm whether the demotion was at the construction site where her son died, she did confirm that it was while working in Kelowna. “I share this today so as not to point the finger at anyone because I have worked on construction sites. I know what the safety culture is and that the culture needs to change. The safety culture in this nation needs to change.” WorkSafeBC’s investigation into the crane crash remains ongoing. Kelowna City Councilor Mohini Singh also spoke Thursday, reporting the latest fatalities at work on the UBCO campus in Kelowna. “We have Harmandeep killed at work. That should not have happened. She was a young girl who worked at UBCO just because she wanted to go to college there and needed the job. She died going to work. You have the right to go to work in the morning “and go home for dinner to see your family,” Singh said. More than a dozen ceremonies took place across the province on Thursday. For more information on workplace safety throughout BC, visit workafebc.com
