Elliot Lake Inquiry pauses in light of new report

The Elliot Lake public inquiry has come to a standstill after a new document surfaced Wednesday, revealing more about the possible cause of the collapse.

Lawyers at the inquiry looking into last Junes fatal Algo Centre mall collapse obtained a 700-page report that outlines in extensive detail what likely caused the roof to cave in.

Called the NORR report named after the company hired by the OPP to conduct the forensic investigation reviews and analyzes the history of the mall, its key players in decision-making and the malls structural failures

Findings in the report align closely with what has already heard in these hearings. The report says evidence suggests that the failure of a beam to connect with an abutting column properly is at the heart of what happened.

In NORR's interim report released in November, it says a welded connection failed, causing the slabs of concrete to crash through the roof.

It isn't known if the full report submitted today contains that same interim conclusion.

Based on the nature and importance of the NORR report, Justice Paul Belanger said the hearings will not move forward until the commission council and the lawyers have read and analyzed it.

An employee of the Algo Malls original owners continued his testimony Thursday morning, but Rod Caughill won't undergo further questioning from other lawyers until Tuesday when the hearings resume again.