Yellowknife (May 14/04) - Closing arguments in the Giant Mine trial, one of the longest civil trials in the Northwest Territories, began Wednesday morning.

Surrounded by 14 other lawyers, Phil Warner, counsel for the plaintiffs, spoke slowly and clearly, making reference to more than 10,000 pages of testimony.

The suit was launched by the Workers' Compensation Board and the families of nine replacement miners who were killed by a bomb on Sept. 18, 1992, during a strike at Giant Mine.

The plaintiffs are claiming $14 million in damages.

Calling the trial "gruelling and exhausting," Warner outlined the civil suit against Royal Oak Ventures and its former president Peggy Witte, the territorial government, the Canadian Association of Smelter and Allied Workers and several union heads along with Pinkerton Security and Roger Warren.

The miners killed in the explosion were entitled "to have and enjoy a safe work environment"-- something Royal Oak Ventures did not provide, Warner said.

Royal Oak should have been aware that the violent atmosphere in Yellowknife during the strike would make it unsafe to use replacement workers in the mine, Warner said.

During his testimony, Roger Warren said it was easy to get unauthorized access into the mine, Warner said, and Royal Oak failed to warn the replacement miners that not all entrances were secure.

In the weeks before the explosion, striking miners entered the mine and sprayed graffiti on the walls as well as exploding a satellite dish in the mine, Warner said.

Royal Oak did not tell the replacement miners that they did not know how the striking miners had got into the mine, Warner said.

The case has been working its way through the courts for about nine years.

Closing arguments in the case are expected to conclude early next week. A decision will be made sometime in the future.