Page 88 Page 88 Do those masks come in smaller sizes By Kevin V incent While the preceding lines of this article are a drama tiza tion it s a storyline that could only be a work of fction until 1978 When it comes to the history of the mining industry there are a small handful of wom en included in the same sentence V iola Macmillan Peggy W itte Edith T yrrell are three of the more common names T oday how ever hundreds of women hold senior level positions in both corporate and government roles So it should come as little surprise that breaking the glass ceiling in mine res cue would have the same outcom e At one time in North Bill Is that you A strained and weak voice r eplies Y eah yeah it s me Ar e you okay Everything hurts I cant move Bill thinks he s dr eaming In fact Bill thinks he may have alr eady taken his last br eath The voice asking him if he s all right is distinctly that of a woman he thinks it s an angel As he struggles with the fact he s trapped by tons of r ock and thickening smoke Bill ponders his fate Am I dead No your e gonna be just fne Bill W er e her e to get you out Falconbridge s Christine Bertoli became the frst woman to compete as vice captain in a Provincia l Mine Rescue Competition coincidentally the frst at an underground venue Fecunis Mine 2004 Page 86 Pictured above is Cynthia Cameron the frst woman in Ontario to Qualify as a Mine Rescuer 1978