The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport activated an accident response headquarters and began on-site response on the 11th regarding the tunnel collapse accident that occurred in the private investment section of the Sinansan Line double-track railway project in Gwangmyeong-si, Gyeonggi Province.
The Ministry announced on the same day that it formed an accident response headquarters headed by Minister Park Sang-woo, and the project operator, Next Train Co., Ltd., also established a separate accident recovery headquarters.
The Director of the Railway Bureau of the Ministry and the Chairman of the Korea Rail Network Authority have arrived at the site to ascertain the circumstances of the accident and check the recovery status. Minister Park is also on his way to the site.
The scene of the collapse accident at the Sinansan Line construction site in Iljik-dong, Gwangmyeong-si, Gyeonggi Province on the 11th. Photo by Yonhap News
Minister Park instructed, "Minimizing human casualties must be the top priority," and said, "Swiftly handle the accident in close cooperation with related agencies such as the Fire Agency, Police Agency, Gwangmyeong City, and Korea Rail Network Authority."
The accident occurred around 3 p.m. that day during underground tunnel construction in Section 5-2 of the Sinansan Line (near Iljik-dong, Gwangmyeong-si) when a structure collapsed. Cracks had appeared in the tunnel structure since around 10 p.m. the previous night, leading to a halt in construction and evacuation of personnel. From 1 a.m. that day, the upper road had been closed off.
The Ministry estimates that two people (one missing, one trapped) are buried. The exact cause of the accident and the extent of the damage will be confirmed through further investigation.
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