WorkSafeBC, coroner investigating ATV crash that killed 1, injured 2 in northern B.C.

WorkSafeBC and the B.C. Coroners Service are investigating the death of a mining exploration worker and serious injury of two others that happened three weeks ago near the northern B.C. town of Stewart.

Ed Kruchkowski, president of Decade Resources, confirmed the identity of the deceased as Jake Irwin, a long-time Decade Resources contractor. 

Irwin was driving an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) carrying two other men when it crashed off a curve on a mining access road at around 11:30 a.m. on Aug. 29. The incident happened on the Red Cliff property north of Stewart.

"We're just really devastated," said Kruchkowski, who was travelling ahead of Irwin in a different ATV at the time.

According to the RCMP, emergency personnel did CPR on one person who was later pronounced dead at the scene.

B.C. Emergency Health Services said paramedics accompanied a search-and-rescue team to the crash site. The two passengers suffered serious injuries and were transported to the airport in Stewart then flown to Vancouver.

Kruchkowski said Irwin was an experienced ATV driver.

The Red Cliff property is located 20 kilometres north of Stewart. It is the site of a historic copper mine that is now under exploration for gold and copper.