The last survivor

On August 14, 1957, 19 year-old Harry Okkema was working alongside the others in the pit, pouring the concrete foundations for the planned pumping station. Unlike his coworkers, Harry lived in Dresden and around 6 o'clock he was called home for dinner. Dirk Ryksen, the foreman, said he could go, but asked Harry to come back after dinner. That saved Harry's life.

When he returned later it was to a horrifying scene: the pit had collapsed, burying the other men alive. A few dozen townspeople were digging desperately, hoping against hope to save some of the doomed men, and a huge crowd watched silently. The newspaper photos showed Harry with Henry van der Veen, another Dresden local, who also survived.

In February, on our last visit to Dresden, Ontario, my colleague Joe Crawford and I met Harry and his wife Tina and interviewed him on camera. It was the twentieth interview we've completed for the film so far.

This grainy photo shows Harry (second from left) with Wilfred Hovius (left), walking up from the pit. Harry is recognizable by his clothing and posture. Wilfred, the youngest victim in the tragedy, often went shirtless because he wanted to keep his tan.

Harry's experiences are an invaluable addition to the story. He described the heavy clay that stuck to their shovels when they were squaring the bottom, how they tied the steel reinforcing rods, and other details of the job. He also shared his memories of the other men. He was particularly drawn to Wilfred (Wiebrand) Hovius, who was the same age, and the two worked together most of the time. He also remembered my father, the 25 year-old site engineer, who he thought was one of the supervisors. After returning from dinner, the 19 year-old experienced the grief and terror of grown-men who had witnessed the cave-in first-hand: his co-worker, Henry van der Veen, and Alvin Keillor, the contractor, who himself had only narrowly escaped.

Harry was interviewed by the press after the cave-in, so I've known about him since I started researching for this film last summer. And I had identified him in some of my father's photos (see above and below). I'm thrilled that we found him and that his story can be a part of this film.

Harry Okkema (left) working on the new water treatment plant on October 31, 1957, a few hundred yards away from the site of the pumping station cave-in. Both photos were taking by my father, Keith Philpott.