School District 27, WorkSafeBC, and local industry are teaming up once again to give a group of high school students a hands-on experience operating “heavy metal” this week.
“This is our 8th year and we have an amazing bunch of students,” says Dave Corbett, coordinator of Careers Programs for School District 27.
“The program has got so much momentum in the school that the students keep applying. We had over 50 students apply for the 24 positions this year.”
The other side of that according to Corbett is an amazing community of industry and people helping with training and running the machines.
“It’s just an amazing sight to see the whole community come together and make this a viable opportunity for our students,” he says.
The group of grade 11 and 12 students from Lake City Secondary and Skyline Alternate school in Williams Lake, and also Peter Skene Ogden School in 100 Mile House will be taking part in their first safety meeting today before they are sent out to the different stations at the Centennial Gravel Pit.
“We again have an active logging site that will be happening and West Fraser oversees that. We have the whole mines operation of the pit that is overseen by the pit boss from Gibraltar Mine, and we have trainers of course from all different organizations….West Fraser, Tolko, Gibraltar Mine, and Mt. Polley Mine, and all of their contractors have just been amazing supporters with all of their machines that have rolled out here,” says Corbett.
“We’re also having BC Hydro who will do a demonstration of the dangers of overhead lines and we’ll be having a few other safety lessons being taught through the day also.”