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– no signs of blood spatterBy Leonard GildarieHow could the body of a teenager pass through a wood chipper machine with an opening less than three inches wide? Further, there are no obvious signs of blood in the immediate vicinity.These are among some of the issues puzzling labour investigators in the horrific death of Jason Fraser, a 19-year-old machine operator who disappeared 11 days ago at the Buck Hall, Essequibo veneer plant of Barama Company Limited (BCL).The investigators have stopped short of calling it murder but made it clear that too many issues remain before the case could even be declared an industrial accident.Jason FraserPolice have ruled the death of Fraser an industrial accident but this conclusion is now being questioned by several high level officials of the Ministry of Labour who visited the worksite yesterday and examined the machine which has been ordered out of operation since the discovery of the teen’s remains last Thursday.During a meeting yesterday at the Buck Hall offices, BCL’s officials agreed with the labour officials’ preliminary findings.“There are now more questions than answers,” said Mohindra Chand, Head of Corporate Affairs and Forests Planning of BCL.Earlier this week, Minister of Agriculture, Robert Persaud, had ordered the veneer plant temporarily closed until safety issues could be ironed out.On Tuesday, the company announced that it has also ceased all its production operations, including those at Buck Hall and Land of Canaan, following a meeting with Persaud and Commissioner of Forest, James Singh.No bloodYesterday, technical officials of BCL and the team led by Minister of Labour, Manzoor Nadir, examined the machine and found no signs of blood.Following the discovery of Fraser’s remains, it was initially believed that he may have been caught in the conveyor belt that led to the chipper blades which feed a boiler.Fraser’s duties involved him standing on a platform next to the conveyor belt leading to the chipper to ensure that pieces of wood do not back up.However, the entire housing of the chipper machine blades was opened again in the presence of the officials and there were no signs of blood to be found on the blades or in the immediate surroundings.It was said yesterday that the conveyor belt taking wood to the chipper moves at slow pace, almost like the baggage carousel at the airport.The investigators, who said that they are awaiting the arrival of an industrial accident expert from the International Labour Organization (ILO) to assist in the probe, also raised questions over the small opening which Fraser would have had to pass through- less than three inches- to have come into contact with the blades.Even assuming Fraser somehow got caught and was pulled through the opening, it was said, the pressure exerted on his skull and body should have seen an enormous loss of blood tissues in the area. There were no visible signs of any. Accompanying the Minister were his Permanent Secretary, Trevor Thomas; Chief Labour Officer, Yog Persaud, and his deputy, Clive Nurse, among others.BCL’s officials, which included Chief Executive Officer, Clement Ooi, were intensely grilled by the team over its supervisory and safety processes and its track record of deaths and accidents.The company declined to comment to questions on the police’s decision to rule Fraser’s death an accident saying that investigations are still underway.The teen's remains were found here after he was believed to have been pulled onto the conveyor to a small opening to the chipper blades.No shortcutsAccording to the Chief Executive Officer, while the company, which conducts logging and other downstream forestry operations, has been in operation since 1991, BCL is now prepared to re-evaluate its safety and other issues, in keeping with government’s demands.Ooi, stressing that investigations are still underway with a team from the Guyana Forestry Commission also visiting today, urged for calm and no speculations.He noted that in August, the Labour Ministry conducted an audit with no major issues surfacing.Nadir, in expressing concerns over the death, felt that the Labour Ministry is to be partially blamed for not moving on the company earlier this year when it recorded a second death. Three persons have died at Barama for the year, more than any other company.Already, for this year, Guyana has recorded an almost 400 per cent increase in the number of deaths, compared to three years ago. There are still four months still left to go.Nadir warned that inspectors will be leaning hard on employers to reduce violent deaths in the workplace with the focus on ensuring safety and health regulations are enforced.Fraser’s death, unfortunate, may very well be the turning point with the labour officials now moving to examine all deaths in the workplace for the year.BCL should not start operating in a hurry unless it meets the safety requirements and other mandates that will be determined by authorities, he said,Questioned yesterday about the payments to workers and whether the company was paying below the minimum wage, building it up with phone allowances, BCL officials denied this.In the case of Fraser in which he was said to be paid only $18,000 a month, an official pointed out that this represented payment for about half of a month in June in which the teen had started working.On Tuesday, the company announced that it was voluntarily closing all its manufacturing facilities.“This is to facilitate a complete and intensive “reinforcement training programme” on all our safety protocols for our managers, supervisors and general staff.”The company assured that it is committed to carry out a thorough investigation in this matter.“As it relates to the issue of the salary, we would like to clarify that Jason Fraser’s monthly salary is in excess of the purported amount mentioned in the press as is evident in our records. This excludes other financial support given to workers as part of a complete remuneration package.”Over the weekend, Minister Persaud, whose portfolio covers forestry, had written Ooi expressing concerns over poor implementation of health and safety practices at the Buckhall.On August 30, Fraser was working the wood chipper machine when he disappeared.His remains were found in the bottom of the machine after a security official at the plant reported smelling a foul odour from the wood chipper machine on Thursday, four days after the man’s disappearance.The Ministry of Agriculture, in its explanation for the closure to the company’s CEO, stressed that Government is unwilling to compromise or flex on workers’ safety.In addition to the temporary closure of the veneer plant,Nike Basketball Shoes Clearance Sale, authorities have also ordered a halt on all training activities there.According to the Minister in his letter, only after the preparation of a written health and safety protocol and its effective implementation that will mandate continuous training for employees, will Government be prepared to allow operations to recommence.