Miners in Ontario are getting together and challenging each other in a series of events to honour the victims of the Hollinger Mine fire that claimed the lives of 39 miners in Timmins in 1928.
At the 2019 Ontario Mine Rescue competition, workers from 20 mines in the eastern Canadian province will test their emergency response knowledge, firefighting skills, first aid response, use of emergency equipment, and decision-making ability under stress in a simulated underground emergency.
According to organizer Workplace Safety North, mine rescue equipment technicians from each mine will also compete in a test of their abilities to service, diagnose and repair the specialized equipment used by teams.
The tournament is taking place from May 8 to 10 in Red Lake & Thunder Bay, Sudbury & Onaping, Timmins & Kirkland Lake, among other towns.
Mine rescue team members are volunteer mine workers trained by Mine Rescue Officers to respond to fires, explosions, falls of ground and other emergencies. The service is celebrating its 90th anniversary this year.
"The competitions ensure that mine rescue volunteers across the province are trained to the same high standards," officials from Workplace Safety North said in a press release.