2 die and 8 injured in Downtown Line accident

10 workers were working on the casting of permanent roof slab between the new and old sections of Bugis MRT station. Eight were on top of the scaffolding supporting the formwork, while two others were working below.

Then, at 6.50am, the scaffolding 4m below the surface collapsed while workers were pouring concrete into the formwork.

Eight workers were injured and sent to Raffles Hospital, and two were missing. At 9.50am, LTA said that the two workers were still unaccounted for.

Over 50 SCDF rescuers and police officers arrived at the accident site with LTA employees, construction workers and two search dogs.

Collapsed bars and planks from the scaffolding covered the underground structure like a web. Rescue workers made their way through the 30m by 5m, and 15m-deep site by cutting metal bars with a blow torch.

At around 10.40am, a body was spotted trapped under fallen scaffolding and submerged in wet cement. It took workers an hour to extract the body. At noon, the death of one worker was confirmed.

Workers from the Public Utilities Board were also seen checking sewage pipes near the site, while police officers were spotted carrying a body tent, which is usually deployed in cases where deaths occurred.

Source: http://www.asiaone.com/Motoring/News/Story/A1Story20120718-359829.html

2 construction workers killed in separate accidents

One of the construction workers is a Chinese, the other a Bangladeshi

Published in The Straits Times on Mar 1, 2012

A policeman at the scene of yesterday's accident at Suites@East Coast. Mr Jaydub Kobiraz, 36, was hacking at the base of an exposed section of a 2m-long concrete pile when it collapsed and struck him on his head. In a separate accident in Fort Road yesterday, a 21m-tall crane toppled, killing a Chinese national. -- ST PHOTO: NEO XIAOBIN

 

By Tham Yuen-C & Lee Xin En

 

Two construction workers were killed on Wednesday in separate worksite accidents.
The first, involving a 36-year-old Bangladeshi, happened at the Upper East Coast Road site for the upcoming Suites@East Coast condominium.
Mr Jaydub Kobiraz Nimoy Kobiraz was hacking at the base of an exposed section of a 2m-long concrete pile when it collapsed at about 9.30am and struck him on the back of his head, preliminary investigations by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) show.
Workers at the scene said that he fell forward, head first, and that his forehead was pierced by an iron rod, even though he was wearing a helmet. Two others who were working alongside him were unhurt.

Cleaning company, director fined for accident that killed four workers

04:45 AM Dec 09, 2011

SINGAPORE - A director of a cleaning company, Tay Kah Heng, was fined S$50,000 for his negligence in acquiring a correct understanding of materials to be used during a chemical cleaning process.

It resulted in an accident that claimed four lives and injured one worker in 2009.

The company, Chemic Industries, was also fined S$100,000 for contravening provisions under the Workplace Safety and Health Act.

Tay was also fined an additional S$4,000 because one of the deceased workers did not have a valid work permit. The work permit was for him to work as a construction worker for another company.

On Feb 27, 2009, 30 minutes after the workers started using nitric acid to clean two heat exchangers, a white substance gushed out and brown fumes were released.

Five workers engaged by Chemic to carry out the cleaning of the exchangers came into contact with the white substance and were taken to the hospital.

Four of them succumbed to their injuries, while the remaining worker survived, with chemical burns to various parts of his limbs.

The Ministry of Manpower's investigations revealed that the accident was a result of the chemical reaction between the nitric acid and the residual polymer inside the heat exchanger. Gases and pressure were produced inside the exchanger, causing the white substance to gush out.

The two exchangers had gone through an earlier round of water cleaning with another contractor, Alfa Laval Singapore, which provided a Material Safety Data Sheet to indicate that strong reactions may occur when residual solution comes into contact with oxidising agents such as nitric acid.

Despite Tay conducting a test on the efficacy of the chemicals in an open environment, prior to the commencement of work, the Manpower Ministry said his negligence in acquiring a correct understanding of the Data Sheet posed a high risk to the workers.

The Data Sheet had also required workers to wear protective gear during the chemical cleaning process, which Tay had failed to provide to his workers. Channel NewsAsia

Source: TodayOnline

Man buried in Jurong Island sandpit dies

A safety officer died at Jurong Island on Wednesday after being partially buried in a four-storey sandpit.

Fahmy Roslee's body was partly covered by sand and seawater at the Alstom Power Singapore worksite when SCDF personnel found him.

According to The New Paper, the 21-year-old had gone down to the pit to conduct an investigation at 4:30pm, after finding out that seawater was leaking into the pit.

On one side of pit, situated next to the sea, was a wall with metal sheet piles to control the flow of seawater, which was used to cool machinery.

A few minutes later, Roslee's colleagues spotted him lying on the bottom of the pit, with sand filling it up at the edges.

An eyewitness told the tabloid that workers gathering around the pit, thinking of how to help Roslee out.

Two excavators were deployed but later recalled because they were not of any help to the situation.

SCDF personnel, after receiving a call at 4:43pm, arrived shortly after to survey the site and determine how to rescue Roslee.

At 7pm, personnel from the Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (DART) was lowered into the pit to get Roslee out.

A total of five DART personnel were deployed to retrieve Roslee.

An SCDF spokesman said that the officers used a metal cage that was lowered by a crane to get to him. They used their hands to remove the sand from Roslee's body before placing him on the stretcher.

His body was then raised back to ground level in the metal cage.

Roslee was pronounced dead on arrival at 8pm.

It is not known if he died from a fall or from being buried in the sand, but investigations are ongoing.
The Ministry of Manpower has suspended on-site sub-structure and temporary earth retaining works.

Source: Yahoo! News

Economy may lose more than $100m if refinery is closed for a month: Economists

Pulau Bukom Shell refinery fire: Counting the losses      Published on Oct 5, 2011 in the Straits Times

 

What Shell's Pulau Bukom offshore petroleum complex in Singapore looked like after a fire was put out on Sept 29. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

By Robin Chan

 

The all clear was given on Shell's Pulau Bukom refinery site on Tuesday, even as operations remain in the process of being shut down. An all-clear safety siren was sounded at 2pm. However, the area around what is known as pump house 43, which is where the fire broke out seven days ago, is still under 'strict control' according to an internal staff memo.

The local economy could suffer a hit of more than a $100 million if the massive Bukom refinery closes for a month, economists have said. The oil giant's plant, which refines 500,000 barrels a day and is Shell's largest in the world, was shut down following a 32-hour fire last week.

Economists looked at the value added to the economy from the petroleum refining and petrochemicals industries, to estimate the cost of closing the plant. Naturally, the costs will vary depending on how long the closure lasts and how much economic activity is lost.

Chemical spill in NUS

A chemical spill in a cargo lift at the National University of Singapore resulted in two men being hurt on Thursday afternoon.

As the chemical was acidic in nature, one of them suffered burns to his hands and legs, while the other complained of skin irritation.The former was sent to Singapore General Hospital (SGH), while the latter was conveyed to the National University Hospital (NUH).

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) were called in to clear up the spill that was confined within the cargo lift.

They cleared the spillage with absorbents. As a precautionary measure the SCDF and the building's Fire Safety Manager evacuated the whole building.

The cause of the spill is under investigation.

(Original Source: AsiaOne, Fri, Jul 08, 2011)

For Chemical Spill Training, contact: enquiry@kavservices.sg

Worker Fell while Plastering External Wall of Air Conditioning Ledge

Incident In this incident, a worker was found dead on the ground beside a high rise building under construction. The worker was found with a restraint belt strapped around his waist.

Before the incident, the worker was carrying out plastering work on the external wall of an air conditioning ledge on the 9th floor of the building. At the other floors, the open sides of the air conditioning ledges were guarded with cable barricades. However on the 9th floor, where the deceased worker was working, no barricade was present.


Recommendations*

1. Conduct risk assessment: A risk assessment must be carried out before starting any work. Through the risk assessment, employers and workers can identify potential hazards and take appropriate actions to eliminate the hazards or reduce the risks involved. Control measures and safe work procedures must be established, communicated and implemented to ensure the safety and health of the workers involved. For this case, the relevant control measures include planning for safe access to the work area and preventing workers from falling while working on the air conditioning ledge.

2. Implement workplace safety and health management programme: Management must put in place an effective workplace safety and health management programme. Through this, operations within the organisation would be guided through a safety policy, establishment of a safety management system and proper work procedures. Effective implementation of established WSH procedures and systems can be done with proper supervision, effective communication and training to ensure that workers adhere to established procedures.

3. Fall prevention / protection: Work at height must be made safe through fall prevention or protection measures. Examples include installing guard rails that prevent persons from falling over open sides, as well as travel restraint, fall arrest or engineered systems with anchorage points as explained below:
• Travel restraint: A travel restraint system prevents the worker from falling by restricting his movement into hazardous areas, such as open sides. For such a system, a restraint belt or a full body harness is suitable once anchored securely.

• Fall Arrest: An individual fall arrest system protects the worker by stopping his fall so that he does not strike the ground. A full body harness with a self-retracting lifeline or a shock absorber and a lanyard are suitable for fall arrest once anchored securely.

• Engineered Systems: Engineered systems such as horizontal lifelines should be installed according to the design by the professional engineer. Deviating from the design can result in the system not functioning as it rightfully should and can result in potentially unsafe conditions for workers.

Source: WSH Alert dated 18 May 2010

* Please note that the information provided is not exhaustive

Collapse of Tower Crane during Dismantling Process

In March 2010, a tower crane collapsed while being dismantled at a construction worksite. The incident caused the death of a worker and injured 3 others.

Five workers were dismantling the tower crane using a ‘climbing cage’. During the process, the entire top section of the tower crane fell to the ground. The toppled section included the jib, counter-jib, counterweights, operator’s cabin and the slewing unit. One of the workers fell together with the toppled section of the crane. He was killed, while three other workers were injured.

Recommendations*
1) Conduct risk assessment: Risk assessment must be carried out prior to the start of any tower crane related activities such as the erection, alteration, use, maintenance and dismantling of the equipment. This is to identify the potential hazards and address the risks associated with the activity. Where the risks are significant, appropriate safety measures must be put in place to eliminate or reduce these risks.
Failure to safely erect or dismantle a tower crane may result in serious injuries, or even fatalities arising from the following:
i. crane collapse;
ii. falling objects; and
iii. falls from height while working on top of the tower crane.

2) Follow proper procedures: Only approved crane contractors should be permitted to erect or dismantle a tower crane. The approved crane contractor must erect or dismantle a tower crane in strict accordance with the crane manufacturer’s instructions. These instructions and other necessary safety precautions are found in the manufacturer’s manual. Failure to adhere to the instructions and safety precautions may result in catastrophic consequences, e.g. crane collapse and falls from height.

3) Conduct safety briefing: Before erecting or dismantling a tower crane, a pre-erecting/dismantling briefing should be conducted to ensure that all personnel involved understand their exact roles and responsibilities. This includes communicating to them the correct procedures/sequence of tasks.

4) Ensure workers are trained and qualified: When erecting or dismantling a tower crane, the approved crane contractor should ensure that the worker stationed in the crane’s cabin controlling the crane is a trained and registered crane operator. All personnel involved in the operation must also have received thorough training and instruction in the erection and dismantling procedures for the particular type and model of tower crane. All erection or dismantling operations should be carried out under the immediate supervision of a competent person.

5) Check weather conditions: Some manufacturers specify limiting conditions (such as wind velocity) whereby the tower crane must not be erected, climbed or dismantled. Approved crane contractors should adhere strictly to these conditions.

6) Maintain exclusion zone: Persons not involved in the erection /dismantling operation should be prevented from entering or working in the area of operation. The exclusion zone should be of sufficient size to contain any possible structural failure of the crane.

(Source: WSH Alert, dated 19April 2010)

Incidents involving Falls from Height

Recently, two incidents involving falls from height were reported within a span of two days. Two lives were lost.

Case 1 - Fall through Roof
A worker was found dead on the ground at the back of a factory unit. He had been assigned to repair the air-conditioning condenser unit on the external wall of the factory. He tried to access the condenser unit by climbing out of the window. As he stepped on the roof, he immediately fell 4.25m through the roofing material.

Case 2 - Fall from Formwork
A worker was working on the formwork of a 2-storey detached house. While receiving a reinforcement bar from another worker, he lost his balance and fell off the formwork to the ground 9.8m below. He was pronounced dead.


Recommendations
1. Prior to the start of work, conduct an adequate risk assessment to identify all potential hazards and the risks involved. Control measures and safe work procedures must be established and implemented.
2. Workers working at height (such as rooftop and formwork) should either be provided with an individual fall arrest system or a travel restraint system. This would include the use of safety harnesses, safety nets or safety belts. When using safety harnesses or safety belts, it must be securely anchored to a suitable anchor point or static line. Safety nets could also be slung close beneath the roof to protect workers from serious injuries.
3. Air-conditioning units may be installed on the ground level to eliminate the need for working at height. If the units must be located at height, safe and proper means of access to the external condenser unit must be provided.

4. Do not step directly onto the rooftops as the roofing material as it may not support the weight of a person. Instead, suitable working platforms such as cherry pickers and/or other safe means of accessing the roof should be utilised.

5. Whenever reasonably practicable, edge protection such as barricades or guard rails should be installed to provide protection against person falling off the formwork. The top rail must be at least 1m above the working surface.

Proper guard rail (blue arrow) installed as barricade

Worker fell into passenger hoistway

Recently, a worker fell to his death from the 11th floor of a building under construction while he was transferring building materials between a passenger hoist and the landing slab. It was likely that he had fallen through an unguarded gap between the hoist and the landing slab. The worker was found not to be wearing any personal protective equipment (PPE) including fall arresting devices.
The exit platform for the passenger hoist at the 11th was not guarded with any side barricades

Recommendations
1. Prior to the start of any work, conduct an adequate risk assessment to identify all potential hazards and the risks involved. Control measures and safe work procedures must be established and implemented.
2. Openings or gaps that create risk of persons falling through must be effectively guarded or barricaded. This shall include installing guardrails or side barricades at the exit platform of the passenger hoist.
3. Every worker working at height with a risk of falling must be provided with suitable and individual fall arresting device such as a safety harness with lanyard attached to a shock absorbing device. The safety harness must be worn correctly and secured to an anchor point or an independent lifeline at all times.
4. All personal protective equipment (PPE) provided to the workers, including safety harnesses, must be in good condition and be without any obvious indication of wear and tear.
5. Provide adequate lighting at the workplace to reduce risk of falls.
6. Workers must be constantly and adequately supervised to ensure that works are being carried out in a safe manner.
7. When using hoists and lifts, the Workplace Safety and Health (General Provisions) Regulations specified that:
a. every hoist shall be thoroughly examined by an authorised examiner at least once every 6 months or at such other intervals as the Commissioner may determine.
b. every hoistway or liftway used shall be efficiently protected by a substantial enclosure fitted with gates that will, when the gates are shut, prevent any person from falling down the way or coming into contact with any moving part of the hoist or lift.
c. every gate shall be fitted with efficient interlocking or other devices to ensure that: (i) the gate cannot be opened except when the cage or platform is at the landing; and(ii) the cage or platform cannot be moved away from the landing until the gate is closed. d. owner or occupier must not modify the hoist system after the 6 monthly inspection.


(Extracted from WSH Alert dated 5 Jan 2009)

Worker killed by toppled Stacked Boom Section

On the day of the incident, a group of workers was tasked to separate a telescopic boom into its individual sections. The separated sections were placed as shown in the figure, using an overhead travelling crane. After placing Boom-1 in its position, the crane operator began to hoist the chain slings away. As the chain slings were being hoisted away, Boom-1 toppled onto a nearby worker and pinned him against a steel block. He was conveyed to the hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

Recommendations
1. Crane operator should ensure that lifting gears are completely dislodged from the load before they are hoisted away. This is to prevent any entanglement of the lifting gears with the load.
2. All personnel involved in a lifting task, including the lifting supervisor, rigger, signalman and the crane operator should remain vigilant during the entire lifting operation.
3. Workers should stay away from the lifting zone and away from the lifting object.

(Extracted from WSH Alert dated 21 Jan 2009)

Worker fell from Formwork

Incident

In a recent accident, a worker fell to his death when he was using a chain block to lift a wall formwork into position.
During the lifting, he was standing on top of the formwork to operate the chain block. At the time of the accident, one of the wire sling ropes used for rigging gave way, causing both the formwork and worker to fall.
He fell 3m onto the floor slab below and succumbed to his injuries.



Recommendations
1. Prior to starting work, conduct an adequate risk assessment to identify all potential hazards and the risks involved. Control measures and safe work procedures must be established and implemented.
2. All persons involved in the work must be adequately trained to be competent for the job, as well as be aware of the risks and the safety precautions required.
3. For any lifting operations, only lifting appliance / machine / gear that have been tested and certified by an authorised examiner should be used. There should not be any unauthorised improvisation or usage of unsuitable or improper appliance / machine / gear.
4. Whenever reasonably practicable, provide engineering control measures such as proper working platforms.
5. Every worker working at height with a risk of falling must be provided with suitable and individual fall arresting device such as a safety harness with lanyard attached to a shock absorbing device. The safety harness must be worn correctly and secured to an anchor point or an independent lifeline at all times.
6. All personal protective equipment (PPE) provided to the workers, including safety harnesses, must be in good condition and with no indication of wear and tear.
7. Provide constant and adequate supervision of the workers to ensure that works are being carried out in a safe manner.
8. The Workplace Safety and Health (Construction) Regulations states that:
a. No person is to ride on the loads, buckets, skips, cars, slings or hooks of the machinery during work operations where hoisting machinery is used. (R138)
b. All works involving the erection or dismantling of formwork must be carried out only under the immediate supervision of a formwork supervisor. (R60)

(Extracted from WSH Alert dated 13 Feb 2009)