VANCOUVER -- WorkSafeBC has imposed nearly $300,000 in administrative penalties on a Vancouver film production company in relation to the death of a stunt performer on the set of Deadpool 2 in August 2017.
TCF Vancouver Productions Ltd. has been ordered to pay $289,562.63 for a variety of violations of British Columbia's workers' compensation and safety laws identified by WorkSafeBC.
Among those violations was failing to ensure that the stunt driver - professional motorcycle racer Joi Harris - was wearing a helmet when performing the stunt that led to her death.
WorkSafeBC's announcement of the fine also lists, as a separate violation, "instructing the stunt performer not to wear safety headgear while operating the motorcycle."
The company also failed to provide adequate supervision of Harris and other workers on the set and failed to provide Harris with a new worker orientation, according to WorkSafeBC.
Harris was attempting a stunt at Jack Poole Plaza on Aug. 14, 2017, when something went horribly wrong. She somehow lost control of the bike, drove off set and crashed through a window across the street.
Harris was an accomplished motorcycle racer from Brooklyn, New York, and billed herself as the first African-American woman to ride in sanctioned road races. Deadpool 2 was her first film as a stunt performer, according to movie industry websites.
The primary purpose of the administrative penalty is "to motivate the employer receiving the penalty - and other employers - to comply with occupational health and safety requirements," according to WorkSafeBC.
The amount WorkSafeBC fines companies found to be breaking the rules is based on the size of a company's payroll, the nature of the violation and the company's history of violations.
Penalties can be larger for high-risk or intentional violations, or if the employer has been fined for the same violation in the last three years, WorkSafeBC said.
