British Columbia

WorkSafeBC recommends charges in Lakeland sawmill explosion

The agency in charge of workplace safety in British Columbia is recommending charges in connection with an explosion at a Prince George mill that killed two people in 2012.

Alan Little, 43, and Glenn Roche, 46, died in the 2012 Lakeland Mills fire in Prince George

An explosion and fire killed two workers, injured 24, and destroyed much of the Lakeland Mills sawmill in Prince George, B.C., in April 2012. (Andrew Johnson/Canadian Press)

The agency in charge of workplace safety in British Columbia is recommending charges in connection with an explosion at a Prince George mill that killed two people in April 2012.

WorkSafeBC has recommended to prosecutors that charges be laid under the Workers Compensation Act.

WorkSafeBC previously released five years of inspection records for the Lakelands Mills sawmill in Prince George, B.C., which indicated dust levels had been a concern at the mill in the past.

A spokesman couldn't provide further details on the recommended charges citing legal concerns, but did say the Crown is expected to make a decision to approve or reject the recommended charges by late April.

The 2012 explosion at the Lakeland Mills facility killed 43-year-old Alan Little and 46-year-old Glenn Roche and came on the heels of a similar incident in nearby Burns Lake.

WorkSafeBC recommended charges in that explosion as well, but they were thrown out over what was called a flawed investigation by the provincial agency.

With files from CBC News