"Even Junior Employees Rushed In": 5 Out of 7 Railway Accident Victims Were Young Workers in Their 20s and 30s

Five Out of Seven Victims Were Young Workers in Their 20s and 30s
Inexperienced Personnel Assigned to Site Management
Some Workers Not on Original Task List, Raising Safety Concerns
Union Criticizes Lack of Experienced Supervisors
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A Mugunghwa train is passing along the Gyeongbu Line railroad in Hwayang-eup, Cheongdo-gun, Gyeongbuk. Photo by Yonhap News

It has been confirmed that five out of the seven victims in the accident, in which workers conducting a safety inspection on the Gyeongbu Line in Cheongdo, North Gyeongsang Province, were struck by a train, were young workers in their 20s and 30s.

According to Korea Railroad Corporation (KORAIL), police, and fire authorities on the 21st, the accident, which occurred on the 19th, involved one KORAIL employee and six subcontractor employees. Of these, two died and five were injured. Both fatalities were subcontractor employees in their 30s.

Among the subcontractor workers in their 20s and 30s, there were two full-time employees and two part-time workers responsible for train approach monitoring. Some had joined the team after completing inspections in other areas to carry out additional tasks.

At the time of the accident, the work being conducted was a slope inspection near the railway, which was not part of the original contract. The incident occurred on the first day a newly formed team was dispatched to the site at KORAIL's request. The KORAIL victim was a third-year employee who had been assigned to the Daegu headquarters' facilities department for only a month before the accident.

A subcontractor representative explained, "Since the employees were not aware of the additional inspection locations, a KORAIL employee accompanied them." However, there have been criticisms that it was inappropriate for inexperienced personnel to be assigned to manage the site.

The railway union stated, "We have been demanding that supervisors with at least five years of experience be assigned, but this has not been implemented." An industry official also commented, "Due to the recent heavy rains, the number of inspection sites surged, and even less experienced employees appear to have been hastily dispatched."

During the investigation following the accident, it was found that two of the six subcontractor workers were not originally listed as participants for the task. One of them died. This has raised concerns that some workers may have been dispatched to the site without receiving adequate safety training.

Additionally, there are indications that the company failed to sufficiently implement basic safety measures such as ensuring visibility, evacuation spaces, and passageways, despite being aware of potential hazards before starting the work.

The police stated, "We will conduct a comprehensive investigation not only into human error in this accident, but also into contractual relationships and potential violations of safety regulations."