Fire Agency "Estimated 1 Worker Fatality"
Sampyo Industry Subject to Serious Accident Act
Ministry of Employment Begins Investigation into Cause
On the morning of the 29th, at a stone quarry in Dohari, Eunhyeon-myeon, Yangju-si, Gyeonggi Province, soil collapsed, burying three workers. Authorities are conducting rescue operations at the accident site. [Image source=Yonhap News]
An accident involving the burial of workers at a stone quarry in Yangju-si, Gyeonggi-do has been confirmed as a workplace subject to the Serious Accident Punishment Act.
According to the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 29th, at around 10:08 a.m. on the 29th, three workers were buried in an accident at Sampyo Industry Yangju Plant located in Yangju-si, Gyeonggi-do.
A fire official held a briefing at the site in the afternoon and stated, "A 28-year-old worker who was operating a drilling machine was found and rescue operations are underway, but unfortunately, it is presumed that he has died."
Sampyo Industry's business is ready-mixed concrete manufacturing, employing about 930 workers. Since the number of regular employees exceeds 50, it is a workplace subject to the Serious Accident Punishment Act, which came into effect on the 27th of this month.
The Ministry of Employment and Labor views this accident as potentially the 'first case' subject to the Serious Accident Punishment Act.
Eight labor inspectors from the Ministry's Occupational Safety and Health Headquarters and the Central Labor Office were dispatched to the accident site on the same day, ordered the suspension of related work, and began accident management and investigation into the cause of the disaster.
The accident is presumed to have occurred when soil collapsed during drilling work for aggregate extraction, burying three workers. Authorities are currently conducting rescue operations.
Since the accident occurred at a workplace subject to the Serious Accident Punishment Act, the Ministry plans to focus on verifying whether it qualifies as a serious industrial accident.
A serious industrial accident is defined as an industrial accident meeting one or more of the following conditions: ▲ at least one death ▲ two or more injuries requiring treatment for six months or longer from the same accident ▲ three or more occupational disease cases caused by the same harmful factor within one year.
The workers buried in the soil on this day include one company official, one daily worker, and one contract worker. Their ages are identified as two in their 50s and one in their 30s.
Following the serious accident situation report and response guidelines, the Ministry of Employment and Labor will immediately form the 'Central Industrial Accident Response Headquarters' and proceed with accident management and investigation into the cause of the disaster.
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