2 workers die, 3 others injured after fall at construction site

Two workers died and three other workers sustained injuries after a fall at a warehouse construction site in Anseong, south of Seoul, on Friday, police and rescue officials said.

The accident occurred at the construction site of a low-temperature warehouse in Anseong’s Wongok district, about 80 km south of the capital, shortly after 1 p.m.

The five workers — all foreigners — fell 5 to 6 meters to the third floor of the building while pouring cement on the fourth floor, due to the collapse of the formwork, the officials said.

The injured workers were transported to nearby hospitals, with three of them in a state of cardiac arrest.

Of the three, two Chinese men in their 30s died, while one Chinese woman in her 30s remained unconscious, the officials said.

Two other injured workers are known to be one Uzbek man in his 40s and one Chinese man in his 50s.

It is not yet known why the formwork collapsed, as police began an investigation into the exact cause of the accident.

Labor Minister Lee Jeong-sik later visited the site of the accident, and expressed his condolences over the workers’ deaths and regret over the injuries.

He instructed officials to conduct a strict investigation, review the applicability of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act and swiftly carry out an inspection out of concerns of a similar accident occurring in the future.

The labor ministry earlier sent labor inspectors to Anseong to look into the cause of the accident and whether the accidents punishment law was violated by the contractor.

The law, which took effect on Jan. 27 this year for businesses with more than 50 full-time employees, imposes punishment — one or more years of imprisonment or a fine of up to 1 billion won (US$690,000) — on business owners or responsible executives for severe industrial accidents that result in death or serious injury.

It is expected to be applied to the falling accident, as the contractor has more than 200 full-time workers.

The new warehouse construction was ordered by KY Logis, a Seoul-based logistics company, and was being carried out by a contractor named SGC eTEC E&C.

The warehouse would have a total floor area of about 27,000 square meters with one basement floor and five above-ground floors. The construction began in August last year for completion in February next year.