Subcontractor falls 15 meters through opening in Gwanak-gu; labor ministry orders work halt and launches investigation into safety law violations

Officials from the Gyeonggi Southern Police Agency and the Ministry of Employment and Labor enter the Incheon headquarters of Posco E&C in Yeonsu-gu, Incheon, to conduct a search and seizure on June 12 in connection with an electrocution accident involving a Myanmar national at the company's highway construction site in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province. The worker, a man in his 30s, was injured June 4 while inspecting a water pump installed in an underground pool at the Gwangmyeong–Seoul expressway extension site and has not regained consciousness.
Officials from the Gyeonggi Southern Police Agency and the Ministry of Employment and Labor enter the Incheon headquarters of Posco E&C in Yeonsu-gu, Incheon, to conduct a search and seizure on June 12 in connection with an electrocution accident involving a Myanmar national at the company's highway construction site in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province. The worker, a man in his 30s, was injured June 4 while inspecting a water pump installed in an underground pool at the Gwangmyeong–Seoul expressway extension site and has not regained consciousness.

A subcontracted worker in his 30s has died after falling at a construction site for the Sinansan Line being built by Posco E&C, raising fresh questions about the company's safety management following a string of fatal accidents along the same rail project.

According to the Ministry of Employment and Labor, the 35-year-old subcontractor fell approximately 15 meters through an opening while working to expand it for cable tray installation at the Sinansan Line construction site in Gwanak-gu, Seoul, at around 5:26 p.m. Tuesday. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Immediately after the accident, investigators from the ministry's Seoul Southern District Office serious-accident investigation unit and the Gwanak branch's industrial accident prevention team, along with officials from the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency, rushed to the site and ordered a halt to the relevant work.

The ministry is investigating the exact circumstances of the accident and has launched a probe into possible violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the Serious Accidents Punishment Act.

The incident marks the third major fatal accident at a Sinansan Line construction site built by Posco E&C.

In April last year, a road above an underground tunnel collapsed at Sinansan Line Section 5-2 in Iljik-dong, Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province, killing one worker and seriously injuring another. In December of the same year, a bundle of steel rebar collapsed at the Section 4-2 site near Yeouido Station, killing a pump truck operator employed by a subcontractor.

Industry officials say the repeated accidents point to the need for a comprehensive review of the prime contractor's safety management systems. The ministry said it plans to scrutinize not only the cause of the latest accident but also whether Posco E&C fulfilled its obligations to ensure worker safety and health.


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