Saskatchewan worker dies of injuries after incident at Agrium potash mine
by The Canadian Press
29-year-old worker was seriously injured Aug. 8 after he became pinned between two pieces of machinery
VANSCOY, Sask.—A worker who was seriously injured at a potash mine in Saskatchewan earlier this week has died.
Todd Steen, general manager of the Agrium mine near Vanscoy, Sask., confirms that Chad Wiklun, 29, died late Aug. 10.
Steen says the loss is devastating to Wiklun’s co-workers.
“The people that work here and the people that worked with Chad on his crew are like a family,” Steen said Thursday.
“Words can’t describe how our workforce feels about this right now and a lot of tears and a lot of heartache right now for sure at our workplace.”
Wiklun was 29 and married with two young daughters.
Steen says the United Steelworkers Union local has set up a trust fund for the girls and Agrium will match employees’ donations.
A GoFundMe page was also set up to raise money for his family before Wiklun’s death. The page has a photo of Wiklun with his daughters. By Thursday afternoon it had reached $16,875 of the $20,000 goal.
Meanwhile, an investigation is underway to determine how Wiklun became pinned between two pieces of machinery while working underground early Aug. 8.
“Really, our goal here is to make sure that we understand the incident very thoroughly, so that we can make sure that nothing like this can ever happen again,” said Steen.
Operations at the mine remain suspended.
