A man who used to operate an auto repair shop in Dartmouth has been charged under the so-called Westray Bill, marking the first time the law — named for a Nova Scotia disaster — has been used against an employer in this province.
Elie Hoyeck, who used to run Your Mechanic Auto Corner, has been charged with criminal negligence causing death in connection with an explosion that killed Peter Kempton, a mechanic, two years ago.
Kempton, 58, died of his injuries after he accidentally sparked the fire while dismantling a minivan with a torch on Sept. 20, 2013.
His daughter, Shannon Kempton, said her father would be glad about the latest developments.
“I think he’d be glad that his accident and his death didn’t go unnoticed,” she told CBC News on Thursday. “I think he’d be glad that I’m fighting to make sure other people don’t die the same way he did.”
The Westray Bill, used to charge Hoyeck, targets employers in cases where workers have been killed or injured.
The bill took its name from the Westray Mine disaster in which 26 coal miners died in an underground explosion. Nova Scotia tried — but failed — to prosecute the mine owners for the serious safety deficiencies in the mine.
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