Teen loses finger in shop class accident

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 25/02/2016 (3698 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Grade 8 student is recovering after he lost a finger in a shop class accident.

Timmy John Reaves, 13, was rushed to hospital immediately after the incident on Feb. 2. It was determined his left-hand ring finger would have to be amputated below the middle knuckle.

“The surgeon at the time saw it and realized it wasn’t salvageable,” said the boy’s father, Tim Reaves.

The injury was traumatic for the young student, but what has made the experience worse for the family, according to Reaves, is the lack of response from the Brandon School Division.

“Accidents happen, I understand all of those things, but you trust your kids with the school division and you expect your kids to come back home,” Reaves said. “In a shop class with power tools, in our day and age, kids shouldn’t be losing fingers.”

Timmy attends George Fitton School, however, the woodworking class is at École Harrison. His father stressed that both schools and their staff have been very supportive in this trying time. It’s the division response that has him concerned.

“After 17 days I phoned to make an appointment to talk to the superintendent. I want some answers: what happened, what are you going to do, what’s changing?” Reaves said.

A meeting was held earlier this week between Reaves and the assistant superintendent, but he was left feeling upset.

“I left the meeting still not knowing clearly what they’re doing to fix the situation,” he said. “People think I’m out for money — I’m not. If any other parent in this town or anywhere, they had their son come home missing a finger and go through that tragic thing, they would be raising hell over it, and you would hope the school division would be behind you completely.”

Reaves was expecting to be given paperwork, such as a report of what happened, a health and safety review, any recommended changes, etc.

“I got nothing,” he said.

According to Reaves, the incident occurred following a bit of miscommunication during class. Timmy was supposed to go to the wood planer and went to the wood jointer by mistake. Once he realized he was at the wrong tool, he hit the stop button but his glove got caught.

“I shut the machine off, and I went to go pull the board backwards. The blade caught my glove which put my hand into the blade,” Timmy said.

Timmy took the next week off during recovery, and was back at the next shop class. The accident hasn’t deterred him from pursuing the skill. He hopes to take carpentry courses when he starts high school next year at Crocus Plains.

As the advocate for his child, Reaves says he feels it’s his responsibility to stand up for him.

“I don’t know after the fact if psychologically he’s going to be upset about it … we’ll cross that bridge when it comes,” he said.

At the very least, Reaves said he hopes this incident will spark a change in how the division responds to traumatic incidents.

“I hope the school division would set up, if something tragic happens, this is what we’re going to do,” he said, such as contacting the family after a certain number of days.

“Half the problem is the unknown. I don’t know what’s going on, they haven’t told me what they’re doing to fix it,” Reaves aid. “What my son did wrong was wearing gloves, but isn’t the school supposed to be a safe environment?”

Terri Curtis, the division’s communications officer, said senior administration was meeting on this matter Wednesday morning. Officials gathered at a press conference to announce the division’s new superintendent would not comment on the issue.

The Brandon Sun requested an interview with a Brandon School Division official on Wednesday, which was denied.

A statement on behalf of the Office of the Superintendent/CEO was later provided via email.

“We regret any situation where harm may befall a student or member of our staff and work closely with those affected to ensure they receive the support they require.”

The BSD cannot comment on a specific incident due to privacy obligations. However, it stressed that student safety is top priority.

“At any given time we have many students on field trips, on our playgrounds, taking work experience, and in our shops and gymnasiums. We continually review our policies and practices to avoid and minimize the risk of accidents and train our staff on safety protocols and first aid,” read the statement. “Any accident results in a review of what caused it, how our staff handled it, and most importantly what can be done to prevent it in the future. We also engage with external agencies and government departments such as Workplace Safety and Health to ensure that we are in full compliance with all government regulations and take and follow their advice.”

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