“No CCTV, radios in disarray…” Obong Station accident bereaved families voice grievances

A 30s Korail Employee Dies After Being Hit by Train During Work
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport: "We Will Thoroughly Investigate to Determine the Cause of the Accident"

On the afternoon of the 8th, cement trains were stopped on the tracks at Obong Station in Uiwang-si, Gyeonggi-do. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] A man in his 30s employed by Korea Railroad Corporation (KORAIL) died after being struck by a train during work, and his family expressed their frustration, saying, "If preventive measures had been taken, this tragedy would not have happened."

A, who identified himself as the victim’s younger brother, recently posted a lengthy message titled "Bereaved family of the KORAIL Obong Station fatal accident" on an online community. The post addressed the incident on the evening of the 5th around 8:30 PM at Obong Station in Uiwang-si, Gyeonggi Province, where KORAIL employee B (33) was struck and killed while performing freight train coupling work. The family criticized the harsh working conditions at the site.

According to A, B was hired in 2018 as an office sales staff member, not a field worker, but was assigned to transportation-related duties after joining. A stated, "Regardless of the job category he was hired for, he was unfairly deployed to field work, but since it was a company he struggled to get into, which new employee would dare to question that?" He argued that B had to endure dangerous tasks against his will.

He also pointed out the poor working environment. A explained, "When I visited the site the day after the accident, the railway was bordered by dense ivy-covered wire fences, leaving no space to escape even if an accident occurred," adding, "There were no visible or installed closed-circuit televisions (CCTV), and at night, the lighting was so dim that work had to be done in barely visible conditions." He continued, "The only means of communication, the walkie-talkie, was also in poor condition," expressing his anger, "If preventive measures had been taken, my brother would not have suffered this tragedy."

A also mentioned the issue of manpower shortage. He said, "I heard that only two people, both relatively new employees, were responsible for handling so many trains," and added, "Experienced workers all rushed to leave, saying the work was too difficult, and KORAIL was only eager to put young new employees in the field." According to A, B walked more than 10,000 steps daily on gravel-covered tracks and suffered from chronic ankle inflammation. He added, "He had long been in poor health due to working understaffed and in harsh conditions."

A criticized KORAIL’s inadequate response after the fatal accident, saying he was hurt by their actions. He claimed, "At the funeral home, throughout the night, KORAIL-related staff showed no sign of remorse and were just going about their work," and "When asked about the accident, they said they didn’t know anything and only gave soulless answers. They didn’t even know my brother’s face or name and were only focused on monitoring our family’s reactions." He also said that after commenting on news articles about the accident, the railway police requested him to refrain from posting online.

The railway labor union urged KORAIL to increase manpower and implement measures to prevent recurrence. The union held a press conference on the morning of the 8th, stating, "The main cause of the accident was the shortage of personnel, which forced coupling work to be done by two-person teams," and demanded, "Manpower must be increased so that work can be done in three-person teams." There have been four fatal accidents involving KORAIL workers this year alone.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced it would conduct a thorough investigation to determine the cause of the accident. On the 9th, Minister Won Hee-ryong expressed condolences at a railway safety measures meeting, saying, "I pray for the deceased and offer my condolences to the bereaved family," and added, "It is devastating and heartbreaking that a series of accidents occurred just two days after the emergency railway safety meeting." He emphasized that KORAIL would be completely overhauled through special inspections and audits.