Ontario’s Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks has ordered a St. Catharines hazardous waste management facility to permanently close following a 2023 explosion that killed a worker.
CBC News reported that the order follows an Ontario Land Tribunal hearing for the company, Ssonix Products, which must submit a closure plan by March 31.
Ryan Konkin, 37, was severely injured in an explosion at the facility on January 12, 2023. As reported by CBC, Konkin told nurses at the hospital that all he did was “open a door.” He was the only worker in the building at the time. Konkin died of his burns later that week in hospital.
The facility sought to re-open in August 2023 for the temporary storage and processing of liquid industrial waste, liquid hazardous, hazardous and non-hazardous waste, according to the Environmental Registry of Ontario.
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The company and its directors face a slew of charges from the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, as well as charges under the Fire Protection and Prevention Act. They also face charges of criminal negligence causing death and arson by negligence.
