New Great Lakes Power boss pledges Wheelan support

Colin Clark, the new president and chief executive officer of Great Lakes Power, took the stage late Friday at a Sault fundraiser to pledge support to triple amputee Lewis Wheelan.

"We are having discussions with the family and we will resolve this matter," said Clark, a Great Lakes vice-president in charge of power generation who in recent weeks has quietly replaced Michael McEwen as president.

McEwen once visited Wheelan in Toronto's Sunnybrook Hospital, offering condolences but no financial assistance.

Boos turn to cheers

Some boos were heard initially as Clark ascended the stage last night, but his promise was greeted with loud applause from the more than 500 people in attendance.

In May, 2001, Wheelan was starting the second day of a new summer job, hired by a contractor for $10 an hour to cut brush near Great Lakes Power lines.

A fiery 7,200-volt power line fell across his body and Wheelan lost two legs, his right arm and his right shoulder.

In March, the Toronto Star devoted a 3,900-word front-page article to Wheelan's struggle to recover from the accident.

Company was asked to turn off power

The article, by investigative reporter Moira Welsh, was sharply critical of Great Lakes Power. It claimed that:

- Five years earlier, Great Lakes Power had laid off a team of highly trained foresters, contracting out the work of keeping "danger trees" away from its power lines

- The job on which Wheelan was employed involved 50-year-old cables and trees that hadn't been cut in years, and so concerned the contractor that he asked Great Lakes Power to inspect the job from a safety standpoint.

- The contractor asked, without success, that the power be turned off while the job was underway.

- Wheelan was put to work on this job without any training.

To read the Toronto Star article, click on this.

Fundraiser exceeds $20,000 goal

Ken Audziss, a Thunder Bay man who organized last night's event, said more than 1,200 tickets were sold and the proceeds will easily exceed the $20,000 target he set for the event.

The money is being used to set up Wheelan in his own Toronto apartment, debt-free.

Lewis's father, Bob Wheelan of Sault Ste. Marie, told SooToday News last night that Lewis moved into the apartment on Monday and "is completely satisfied."

"He felt like a prisoner in the hospital," the elder Wheelan said. Lewis receives home-care support every other day.

Distance education

Lewis is starting a Wilfred Laurier University distance-education course in psychology to get the final credit he needs to transfer to York University.

To see Bob, Melanie and Sarah Wheelan at the Friday-night fundraiser, click on this.

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