Western Forest Products employees say the shutdown of the Englewood logging train is a major blow to the North Island community of Woss, which is still reeling from a derailment in April that killed three logging workers.
Employees are upset that they found out they are losing their jobs through social media.
“It’s just a big blow,” said Robin Kenny, a 33-year-old husband and father of three who has been working on the railway for five years. He followed in the footsteps of his father, who started in the 1980s.
“It was a boyhood dream of mine to work on a railroad and getting this job made me happy.”
Kenny grew up in Woss and bought a house there two years ago in the hopes work on the logging train would provide well-paying, steady income for the next few years.
Instead, Western Forest Products announced Tuesday that the oldest logging train in North America would be shutting down. The company said it will work with the union to help some workers transition to other jobs. About 15 of the 34 railway employees will lose their jobs.
Kenny said he’s young enough to be re-trained and might be able to work on the logging trucks that will now be delivering wood to sorts and mills. However, he worries about the future of some of the older employees.
Larry Knutson has worked on the railway for 30 years, starting out as a second brakeman and moving up to conductor in 1995.
“Railroading was my life. It was my passion,” said Knutson, 65. He grew up in Woss and remembers steam locomotives running through the community, which piqued his fascination with trains.
The shutdown came as a shock to Knutson, who said he’s not ready to retire. “It’s just a horrible way to end what, for me, was the best job I’ve ever had in my life,” Knutson said.
The train has been shut down since April 20 after three people were killed and two injured when a rail car loaded with logs rolled down the tracks and collided with a track maintenance car. The collision sent logs spilling across the tracks, killing Roland Gaudet, Clement Reti and Jake Galeazzi.
The Transportation Safety Board, WorkSafe B.C. and the B.C. Safety Authority are investigating, but no reports have been released.
Western Forest Products said the decision to shut down the rail line is not related to the derailment, but is a business decision to use trucks, which provide more flexibility.
Vanessa Kaspar, Gaudet’s step-daughter, said the news is a double blow to workers who lost friends in the derailment and now have been left jobless.
“My heart sank for the families living there [in Woss] who depend on those jobs,” she said. “Dad was always concerned about jobs in Woss and his co-workers, they were like family.”
Kaspar said her life hasn’t been the same without her step-dad, who was her best friend. “It’s been really heart-breaking.”
Gaudet’s sister, Marian Campbell, said in a statement: “All I can say is that after suffering such a horrific incident in April, this news can only be devastating to the Woss community.”
At a meeting with the company on Wednesday, employees asked why they had to find out about the railway closure on Facebook rather than from Western Forest Products directly.
“They were very angry about the way they were told, they were very frustrated about everything,” Kenny said.
Amy Spencer, a Western Forest Products spokeswoman, said the publicly traded company was unable to release any information until the financial markets were closed. At that time, a statement was filed and only then was the company allowed to release the information elsewhere.
“We tried to reach all employees as quickly as possible,” said Spencer, but added that some were not immediately reachable.
Dan Jorgenson, business agent with United Steelworkers Local 1-1937, said the feeling among the employees is “anger and resignation.”
“One man described it as the light at the end of the tunnel went out,” he said.
Jorgenson questioned why it took six months after the derailment for the company to announce the closing. “The crew has been waiting for six months to hear if they have a job,” Jorgenson said, adding that most employees are already halfway through their employment insurance.
The Englewood Railway is a 90-kilometre logging line that runs from Vernon Lake, through Woss, past Nimpkish Lake Provincial Park to Beaver Cove.
David Rushton, Woss’s regional district director, said the closing of the logging train is “the end of an era.”
The shutdown had been rumoured for a long time, Rushton said. But that doesn’t make it any easier for the tiny community of 200 people.
“We got knocked down, we were halfway back up, and now we’re knocked down again.”
