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Crane topples onto ship in Tuas, worker missing after falling into sea

Crane topples onto ship in Tuas, worker missing after falling into sea
The crane's base appeared to have buckled, causing the rest of the crane to fall towards the berthed ship.
PHOTO: St Reader

SINGAPORE - A search operation is ongoing to locate a worker who fell into the sea on Monday morning (Aug 22), after a shore crane collapsed at a shipyard in Tuas and injured four other workers.

In response to queries from The Straits Times, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said a 38-year-old Bangladeshi worker was on the pier at Keppel Shipyard where the crane had toppled.

The accident happened at about 10.40am on Monday after part of the concrete pier that the crane was standing on collapsed, said MOM. This caused the crane to topple and become partially submerged under water.

As at 3.15pm on Tuesday, the worker employed by Kumarann Marine is still missing.

Two other Bangladeshi workers aged 29 and 31, a 48-year-old Chinese national, and a 40-year-old local worker sustained minor injuries as a result of the accident at 51 Pioneer Sector 1.

They are all in stable condition, the ministry added.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to the accident at noon on Monday. The 40-year-old Singaporean and the 31-year-old Bangladeshi were taken to National University Hospital.

In a statement to ST, Keppel Shipyard said a section of the quayside had given way, causing two workers to fall into the sea and a crane to tilt to the side.

"We have rescued one of the workers who is in stable condition, while the other worker is currently missing. We are working with the SCDF and Police Coast Guard on the search operations," said a spokesman.

Photos of the incident circulating on social media showed that the crane was being used next to a large vessel that was berthed at the shipyard.

In the photos, the crane's base appeared to have buckled, causing the rest of the crane to fall towards the berthed ship.

The boom of the crane, which is the long fixed arm used to move objects, can be seen twisted and strewn atop the ship.

MOM said it is investigating the cause of the accident, and has stopped all works at the pier. Keppel Shipyard said it is working closely with the authorities to conduct thorough investigations.

"Keppel Shipyard values the life and safety of every worker. As investigations are ongoing, we are unable to provide further details at this juncture," it added.

This is at least the second workplace accident to have taken place at Keppel's shipyard in Tuas this year, and the second to involve the collapse of a large structure.

On March 28, two Bangladeshi workers, aged 30 and 42, died after they were thrown off a vessel that was docked at the shipyard after a structure atop the vessel collapsed.

They were among three workers who were at work on a scaffold that was built around the structure.

The third worker, also a Bangladeshi, managed to cling onto the structure after it had collapsed.

The 25-year-old was later rescued by the shipyard's emergency response team and taken to the hospital for treatment.

Alarm bells have gone off over slipping workplace safety and health standards here, after a rise in work-related deaths and major injuries in recent months.

As at Aug 3, 32 workers have died so far this year - more than the 30 work-related deaths recorded in the whole of 2020, and close to the 37 deaths recorded last year.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.

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