By Richard Rolke - Vernon Morning Star Published: June 04, 2009 6:00 PM
An explosion that rocked a Vernon neighbourhood continues to be investigated. Rocks were sent flying into two homes, as well as adjacent yards, as part of a blasting project on Mt. Ida Drive Tuesday at about 9:15 a.m. “The Workers Compensation Board and the City of Vernon are doing their investigation. Our insurance adjustor is also on it,” said Theresa MacLean, co-owner of Jock’s Blasting, which is working on a new development on Middleton Mountain. “We have all of the proper authorities involved. We’re not sitting on this lightly.” With the investigation underway, MacLean believes it’s premature to speculate on what may have caused the accident. But she stands behind the track record of the Vernon company. “Safety is one of our biggest issues. We have been in business for 29 years and this is our first incident,” said MacLean.
The City of Vernon is demanding to see documentation on what happened during the incident, what can be done to avoid future problems and how the company is assisting the impacted homeowners. “There will be no more blasting on the site until we get that information and we are satisfied that everything possible is being done,” said Ed Stranks, a municipal development technician. One house hit by rocks experienced interior damage to baseboards and a ceiling fan, while the other property had an outside kennel destroyed. Neither property owner could be reached for comment, but Gary Raasch, who lives across the street, found three rocks in his yard. They had flown about 300 feet. “At first I thought they hit the house,” he said of the noise the rocks made as they slammed into the ground. Raasch admits that Tuesday’s incident has the neighbourhood apprehensive about construction. “Everyone has a concern about them continuing with blasting,” he said. “Another foot and it would have been through our window.”
In May 2008, two residences on Mt. Bulman Place sustained significant damage after blasting at a site sent a shower of rocks flying. That incident involved a Kelowna blasting company.
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