Warning over risks of motorized conveyor belt ‘deficient’ prior to strangulation: report

Quebec’s workplace health and safety board (CNESST) has released its report into a choking incident at a Montreal bar in February in which a woman was seriously injured.

The CNESST said it happened on Feb. 21, when a “person in a position of authority” at Bar au Petit Tonneau was attempting to put cases of empty bottles out to the curb for recycling.

In a news release, the CNESST says that the individual, with the help of a volunteer, decided to send the cases outside the bar using a motorized conveyor belt.

The release states that after turning the conveyor belt on from the basement, the person in charge placed a case onto the conveyor belt.

When the box started slipping, the individual approached the conveyor belt with their upper body in an attempt to catch the box and put back in place.

That’s when their scarf got caught in an opening between the belt and the motorized drum of the conveyor, resulting in strangulation.

The woman was hospitalized and treated for serious injuries.

The CNESST said the identification of risks linked to the use of the conveyor belt was “deficient.”

Following the incident, the CNESST prohibited the use of the motorized conveyor until protective devices, such as guards, were installed.

The guards are meant to make the danger zones of the machine inaccessible when in use.

The health and safety board also recommended wearing close-fitting clothing and tying up long hair when using that type of machinery.

The CNESST states that as of Aug. 2, the ban on using the motorized conveyor belt is still in place.

The board says its report into the workplace incident will be passed along to brewing companies such as Labbat, Sleeman and Molson Coors, as well as Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, since their workers regularly use conveyors.

The CNESST said it also wants to raise awareness about the risks of working with those types of machines and to “ensure that workers do not use unsafe equipment when out making deliveries.”

Bar owners, restaurant associations, grocers and depanneur owners will also be made aware of the CNESST’s report.