Artillo Berdusco

Artillo Berdusco. . , Born in Sault Ste. Marie in 1929, Atillio (Tillio) was the oldest of 8 children of Reno and Pauline Berdusco. The family first settled at the Parkhill Mine where Reno worked as a gold miner and Pauline operated a dry goods store. When the gold mines shut down in 1939, Tillio's father found work at the new Sinter Plant and his mother continued a general store in the "Berdusco Building" at the corner of Broadway and Laurier. , Tillio completed his high school education at Sault Collegiate in Sault Ste. Marie in 1948 where he was the 1st recipient of a scholarship awarded by Sir James Dunn. He attended Michigan College of Mining and Technology, graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Mining Engineering in 1952 and was inducted into their Academy of Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences in 2006. , Atillio Berdusco worked for Algoma Ore Properties at the Helen/MacLeod Mine after graduation and eventually worked his way up to Superintendent of the Sinter Plant and Superintendent of Mines. In 1973 Tillio and his family moved to Sault Ste. Marie when he was transferred to a position with the parent company Algoma Steel Corporation Ltd. His various titles at ASC included Superintendent of Primary Steelmaking, and Corporate Manager of Raw Materials Purchasing and Traffic. , One of his many achievements at the Helen Mine was planning and executing the largest controlled underground explosion in Canadian mining history. Over a period of 18 months Tillio oversaw the drilling of 2,437 blast holes which were wired to 153 tons of dynamite set to detonate in a controlled blast of 15 separate intervals within the one second explosion. At the flick of a switch by Tillio on September 24, 1955, 1,131,120 tons of rock was unearthed in the Block II Pillar Blast. The unprecedented explosion sent rock 600 feet in the air and a 100 foot shower of dust which awed the evacuated mine staff and their families relegated to safe zones during the special operation. , In 1958, Tillio supervised the installation of an upgraded Aerial Ropeway system which transported ore from the heart of the Helen Mine in 3 ton capacity buckets to the sinter plant stockpiles. In the 1970's Tillio was also instrumental in replacing this cumbersome system of ore transportation with a cable belt. At the time, this conveyor belt held the world record for the longest single belt system with the steepest incline. It was 15,000 feet long and carried raw ore up an elevation of 2,400 feet from the deep recesses of the iron mine. , Atillio Berdusco retired in 1991 but continued to play an active role in community life as a volunteer and coordinator of a number of events and celebrations promoting community, education and his love of family and life in Northern Ontario. Mr. Berdusco passed away in January of 2007. , Story written by Johanna Rowe www.wawahistory.com