TRIUMF Update - Return to power and next steps

[Lisa Lambert]

Colleagues --
Full power has been restored to the TRIUMF site and routine access to the site can now be resumed.  Normal start-up procedures are being followed. Please check with your supervisor or Operations if you have questions.
I want to extend TRIUMF's appreciation to all those involved in the power recovery efforts. Joint TRIUMF, UBC, and contractor teams worked diligently to restore power safely and swiftly and crews will continue to work through the week on more permanent repairs.
As I announced yesterday, the power outage was the result of a contractor accidentally drilling into a high-voltage duct bank that serves power to the TRIUMF site. The drilling was taking place as part of an environmental assessment to prepare for new construction. The contractor was not harmed, nor was the health and safety of our employees, visitors, or our neighbours put at risk.
With power safely restored, we're now bringing our attention to understanding how this incident occurred and how we can prevent something like it from happening again. As a precaution, effective immediately I'm issuing a moratorium on excavation activities at TRIUMF until Anne Louise Aboud, TRIUMF's Deputy Director for Operations, has reviewed our policies and procedures on excavation and any potential corrective actions have been implemented.
TRIUMF is committed to safety and reliability, ultimately to the benefit of our staff, users, and the larger community. More thorough investigations will also be conducted. We'll conduct a TapROOT investigation, part of our usual process, and Terry Sanghera, TRIUMF's Occupational Health & Safety Associate Officer, will facilitate a WorkSafeBC process. Moreover, for extra diligence, I'm asking Anne Louise to lead a broader internal investigation to identify opportunities where we can learn and improve, with the aim of further strengthening our processes and systems and preventing something like this from happening again.
We're sorry to those who lost experimental beam times and were inconvenienced by this outage. I want to thank our user community for your flexibility, support, and understanding during this time.
Sent on behalf of
Jonathan A. Bagger
TRIUMF Director

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