Even if it is an “accidental” death, the death of road signalman Pascal Cauchon, which occurred almost a year ago to the day on a construction site in the Centre-du-Québec, calls for a series “Interventions” to ensure the safety of these workers, judge the Coroner’s Office in a report released Thursday.
Posted at 10:49 a.m.
“It is imperative that we set in motion all the interventions – ministry, police, media and all the workers – that could reduce all the risks. Mr. Pascal Cauchon, I repeat it differently, did not have to lose his life at his work. I hope that his death will serve at least to protect the life and the integrity of those who remain and who would be likely to be in a similar situation, ”wrote Mr.and Yvon Garneau in his report.
On April 8, a “road train” type truck struck two workers on a construction site, after colliding with an impact attenuator vehicle, in Saint-Cyrille-de-Wendover, on Highway 20. Pascal Cauchon, a 39-year-old traffic signalman, had lost his life. Another worker was also injured. The two were installing signs on the shoulder of the highway when the tragedy occurred.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY CNESST
The scene of the incident.
In his report, the coroner notes that police surveillance during the work to install the signage “would have been an effective measure to ensure that the installers and their supervisor work in conditions of increased safety”. “I still don’t know why that wasn’t the case at that time. The employer, Location Jesna inc., however, explained to me that various agreements already exist between the MTQ and the SQ on this subject,” says Ms.and Garneau.
Several measures have already been taken, including by the employer and the government. In November, the Commission for Standards, Equity, Health and Safety at Work (CNESST) ruled that inadequate signage could have caused the accident.
At the time of the incident, the driver of the road train was following another vehicle in the right lane. He therefore only saw the attenuating vehicle when this other vehicle “moved into the left lane”, according to the Commission, which asserts that “the presence of another vehicle to its left” prevented the driver to make a lane change. The collision swerved the truck towards the two workers, who were struck. The CNESST then recommended applying the signs on this type of construction site without obstructing the right lane.
Go further
According to the coroner, the Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ) will have to “intensify” its efforts to educate vehicle drivers “about the importance of respecting the safety corridor put in place during work on the road network”.
Mand Garneau also recommends that the Ministère des Transports install a variable message sign (VMS) “closest to the construction site” and announce “any lane obstruction” in real time. Quebec should also “consult with the Sûreté du Québec” for “increased” police surveillance during the installation of the signaling elements.
The coroner urges Quebec “to lower the speed to 70 km/h for short-term work during the installation and removal of signaling devices”, or even “to increase the fines and demerit points of drivers of vehicles when the safety corridor is not respected”. He suggests that the government and the CNESST carry out “awareness-raising activities (eg campaign and others) in order to strengthen worker safety”.
Increase “year on year”
At the Association of Quebec Road Sign Workers (ATSRQ), President Jean-François Dionne regrets that the number of accidents involving road signal people “continues to increase from year to year”. “Since 2016, 70 workers have been injured. Insurance premiums have quadrupled for employers. On average, it has been one fatal accident per year since 2012,” he explains.
For him, the coroner’s recommendations “are a good start”. He says that “above all” more monitoring is needed. “We know very well that people are not going to slow down to 70 km/h if there are no more patrol boats or photo-radar. It takes concrete actions from us, otherwise it won’t change much, ”insists Mr. Dionne.
He proposes to be “much more severe” and to impose up to six demerit points for motorists exceeding the limits on a construction site. “Quebec could even go to the same level as an incident involving a school bus, that is to say nine points,” he slips, recalling that several American states are already moving in this direction.
“Motorists need to understand that what they have in their hands is a weapon. It can kill, ”insists Mr. Dionne.
Denouncing the “laxity” of the authorities, his group urges the ministers François Bonnardel and Geneviève Guilbault, as well as the Sûreté du Québec, to take the necessary measures to “enforce the security corridor”, by ensuring that the flagmen are not not “left alone with reckless drivers”.