"The roof just exploded," is how a member of Immaculata Parish in Burns Lake, B.C., described the fireball which levelled the local Babine Forest Products mill Friday, Jan. 20.

 

On the Monday after the disaster the second of two bodies was pulled from the smouldering wreckage, said Immaculata parishioner John Bertacco, a member of the Babine native band.

 

Nineteen injured workers, some in critical condition, had earlier been flown to hospitals in Alberta and B.C.

 

The bodies of the two dead men were identified as Bertacco's cousin Carl Charley, 42, and Robert Luggi, 45.

 

Bertacco, who started working in the mill straight out of high school, began doing counselling for the band two and a half years ago.

 

Hundreds of the townsfolk, he said, began gathering at the Margaret Patrick Memorial Hall after word spread of the explosion.

 

"We'll stay open around the clock to help families deal with the aftermath," said Bertacco.

 

Difficulties now include plunging temperatures. It is hard for workers to withstand the cold as they go into the mill to begin to deal with the situation.

 

The loss of the sawmill, Bertacco said, is a personal and economic disaster for Burns Lake. A small army of mental health counsellors is available to help people, he added.

 

"We have a lot of support here, and there have been at least nine counsellors and security officers in the hall."

 

Immaculata Church was completely full on the Sunday after the fire, said parish secretary Gerda Feldmann.

 

"Everyone was so upset and wanted to come and pray for the injured and missing and the future of our town," Feldmann said.

 

She explained that while the pastor, Father Albanus Ogowuihe, was on a trip home to Nigeria, Father Vincent James, an Oblate of Mary Immaculate, has been making the 45-minute drive from Fraser Lake to celebrate Mass.

 

Everyone is in shock," said Father James. "They're not just mill employees, they are family, so everyone is affected. The mill is the backbone of the town. This will affect so many, including people bringing logs and those who sell the lumber.

 

"I amazed at how strong their faith is. A father of one of the workers told me that 'prayer has gotten us through so far and prayer will support us now.'"

 

Both families of the workers who were fatally injured, said Father James, have suffered difficult losses in the recent past.

 

Four days after the accident, Bishop Gerald Wiesner, OMI, of Prince George conducted a prayer service in the Margaret Patrick Hall for the workers and families.

 

Father Ogowuihe, who was back in Burns Lake the weekend after the accident, said that he had received a text message from someone advising him of the disaster, but he was still shocked to learn when he returned how serious the situation was.

 

The bishop, he said, was planning to come to Burns Lake for the funeral Mass for Carl Charley Feb. 4.

 

"I am so concerned, as the mill is the lifeblood of the town," said Father Ogowuihe. "Hopefully another mill will be built. If not, I fear that Burns Lake will turn into a ghost town."

 

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