Procon Mining and Tunnelling has been charged with eight counts of breaching safety regulations regarding the Oct. 19, 2009 death at the Wolverine Mine.

The charges were filed last week in Yukon territorial court.

Paul Wentzell, a 20-year-old apprentice mechanic, died after the Toyota Landcruiser he had parked on a steep underground incline rolled downhill and struck Wentzell from behind at about 9 a.m. as he was walking toward another piece of equipment.

The incident report was prepared by the Yukon Workers' Compensation Health and Safety Board.

It indicates Wentzell was struck and knocked over before the Landcruiser came to rest against another piece of equipment.

While he was able to walk and talk, the resident of Alberta and former Newfoundlander was flown to Whitehorse to be examined.

He arrived at Whitehorse General Hospital at 12:20 p.m. and died of internal injuries 48 minutes later, at 1:08.

The mishap report indicated Wentzell had engaged the emergency break but had left the vehicle in neutral.

The brake, according to the report, was unable to hold the weight of the Landcruiser parked on the hill.

Procon is charged with:

• failing to ensure the vehicle's emergency brake was in proper working order;

• failing to inspect the vehicle within its 250-hour maintenance schedule;

• failing to identify the vehicle as unsafe for use;

• failing to ensure Wentzell had received proper training on the Landcruiser; and

• failing to ensure a trainee was properly supervised.

No pleas have been entered to the charges. The matter is scheduled to be in court Nov. 16 for the first appearance by the company.

Under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, infractions carry a fine between zero and $150,000 for the first offence, and up to a maximum $300,000 for subsequent offences.

Procon, an internationally recognized underground mining company, is not commenting on the charges. It has been contracted to do the underground work at the mine.

The Wolverine Mine, owned by the Yukon Zinc Corp., is located southeast of Ross River.

It was scheduled to be in production this past summer, but a second underground fatality, as the result of a cave-in last April, halted all work underground for four months.

The second fatality is still under investigation, Kurt Dieckmann, the safety board's director of health and safety, said this morning.

Dieckmann declined to discuss the charges because the matter is now before the courts.

He said the investigation into the cave-in that killed 25-year-old William Fisher of Kelowna, B.C. should be wrapped up in January.

Yukon Zinc spokesman Shae Dalphond said the company is now looking to be in full production by the end of March.

Currently, test runs of the new mill using stockpiled ore is occurring, and Yukon Zinc is planning to ship a couple of trucks of concentrate to the B.C. port of Stewart later this month to further test its work plan, he said.

Dalphond said while the company has received the go-ahead to continue work on the upper levels, it's still waiting for the completion of its ground stabilization plan for the lower levels where the cave-in occurred.

There are approximately 112 workers on the payroll now, or just under half of what Yukon Zinc will need when it's in full production, Dalphond said.