A Burnaby construction worker is facing criminal charges after he allegedly caused a colleague’s thumb to be severed during an argument at a North Vancouver job site.

Mark Stephen Peabody, 39, was working at the site at 1120 Marine Drive in September 2010 when he reportedly got into a heated exchange with Tyler Nicholson, 21, of Surrey. Growing angry, Peabody grabbed a piece of wood that Nicholson was cutting and yanked it, dragging the younger man’s left hand into a saw and cutting off his thumb, according to Nicholson.

After the incident, the victim was rushed to Lions Gate Hospital where doctors successfully reattached the appendage, although the top joint no longer works.

Peabody has pleaded not guilty, arguing what happened was an accident.

Nicholson gave his version of events in B.C. Supreme court Monday, telling Justice David Masuhara the dispute started on Sept. 24, 2010 after Peabody reprimanded his brother for not wearing safety goggles.

All three men soon got drawn into the argument. “Mark was standing a few feet away just yelling,” said Nicholson. “He was yelling profanities.”

Nicholson said he had turned back to work at the saw where he was cutting lengths of lumber, when “(Peabody) grabbed the board. . . . When it was pulled, my hand shot towards the blade.”

Nicholson said he had been holding the board at least a foot and a half away from the blade before Peabody pulled on the wood.

Under cross-examination from Peabody’s lawyer Pamela Smith-Gander, Nicholson said he filed a report with the Workers Compensation Board and has been getting WCB payments while he retrains, taking industrial safety and first aid courses.

But, “It wasn’t an accident,” he said. “I wasn’t going to report it as an accident.”

The trial continues this week.

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