Signs of Collapse Detected the Day Before the Accident, Leading to Work Suspension
Lower Section Workers Sensed Imminent Danger and Sent Radio Warnings to the Upper Section
Testimonies have emerged that, just before the collapse at the Sinansan Line underground tunnel construction site in Iljik-dong, Gwangmyeong City, Gyeonggi Province, workers sent radio messages instructing, "Stop work and evacuate."
On April 19, Yonhap News reported this information, citing a police investigation. According to Yonhap's coverage, POSCO E&C, the construction contractor, ordered all work to stop at around 9:50 p.m. on April 10, the day before the accident, after signs of an impending collapse appeared at the underground tunnel site. At that time, the situation was reported to be extremely serious, with the ceiling of the left tunnel?being constructed using a "2arch" structure?collapsing and soil pouring in.
The underground tunnel construction site of the Sinansan Line in Gwangmyeong City, Gyeonggi Province, where a collapse accident occurred on the 11th. Photo by Yonhap News
Afterward, the contractor instructed a subcontractor to reinforce the pillars, and a total of 19 workers were deployed for this task?12 in the lower section (underground tunnel) and 7 in the upper section (ground level). At around 2:30 p.m. on April 11, they began lowering H-beams into the lower section. However, about 40 minutes into the work, at 3:13 p.m. on the same day, both the underground tunnel construction site and the upper road collapsed simultaneously, followed shortly by a full collapse.
In the lower section, where underground tunnel construction was actively underway, workers were able to directly observe signs of the impending collapse, allowing for relatively quick evacuation. However, in the upper section, it was reportedly much harder to detect any warning signs. The lower section workers, who were working about 30 meters underground, could not communicate directly with those above but were able to contact them via radio. According to police investigations, the lower section workers sent radio messages just before the collapse, instructing, "Stop work," and "Everyone evacuate."
In reality, the radio messages were delivered to the upper section workers, enabling some to escape to safety. However, two workers who were unable to evacuate in time were either found dead after being reported missing or were dramatically rescued after being seriously injured and trapped. The deceased, a POSCO E&C worker in his 50s, is believed to have been in the education center container and was unable to evacuate. A subcontractor excavator operator in his 20s, who was injured, testified, "I was going to drink water after getting off the excavator to repair the machine when the accident happened."
A police official stated, "We have not yet reviewed all the records, so we cannot comment on the statements of the workers interviewed as references."
At around 3:13 p.m. on April 11, both the underground tunnel construction site and the upper road at Section 5-2 of the Sinansan Line double-track railway project in Iljik-dong, Gwangmyeong City, Gyeonggi Province, which was being constructed by POSCO E&C, collapsed. As a result of this accident, one worker was killed and another was injured.
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