Union pleads for action four years after B.C. crane collapse that killed five people

A section of the vertical column of a construction crane is lowered past the mangled section of the fallen boom in Kelowna, B.C., Wednesday, July 14, 2021, following a fatal collapse of the crane on Monday. (Desmond Murray / The Canadian Press)

BURNABY — Officials from a B.C. construction union say it’s been four years since a crane collapse killed five people in Kelowna, and their families and the industry are still waiting for answers from WorkSafeBC about what happened, and from prosecutors about possible criminal charges.

The International Union of Operating Engineers Local 115, which represents hundreds of crane operators in the province, says it’s calling on the BC Prosecution Service to move forward with a criminal trial to “deliver justice to the victims’ families.”

The union says there’s been four more crane collapses since the tragedy in Kelowna on July 12, 2021, that killed Cailen Vilness, Jared Zook, brothers Patrick and Eric Stemmer and Brad Zawislak, who was killed when the crane fell on the building next door.

Josh Towsley, the union local’s assistant business manager, says Kelowna RCMP’s investigation recommended that prosecutors lay a charge of criminal negligence causing death more than a year ago, and WorkSafeBC has also probed the crane collapse but has not released its investigation report.

Towsley says the WorkSafeBC report has “remained hidden from the public and industry,” hampering the union and the industry’s ability to understand what happened and how to protect “members and the public from future tragedies.”

The BC Prosecution Service says in a statement that it has received the RCMP’s report but “the police investigation and charge assessment process is ongoing,” and it doesn’t have a timeline for completion.

Towsley said in an interview Friday that the delays in laying criminal charges and releasing the WorkSafeBC report are cause for concern.

“My fear is twofold,” he said. “My fear is that industry hasn’t made the changes necessary to prevent this type of accident from ever happening again because we haven’t been able to evaluate the report from WorkSafe. And secondarily, my fear is that the families will never receive the justice that I believe they’re entitled to.”

WorkSafeBC said in a statement that it recognizes “the lasting impact of this tragedy on families, friends, co-workers, and the wider community, and we understand the ongoing desire for answers and information.”

It said its investigation report will not be released while prosecutors mull charges, and though the report hasn’t been made public, WorkSafeBC says it “has incorporated all key learnings from the investigation into its crane safety initiatives, including for tower crane operation, assembly, disassembly, and repositioning.”

This report by Darryl Greer of The Canadian Press was first published July 11, 2025.