At least four people died and six were injured on Tuesday after a collapse in a road construction site in an area south of the capital of South Korea, Seoul, fire authorities said.
The accident took place at 9:49 am (5:49 am pkt) in Anseong, about 70 kilometers from Seoul, when a 50 -feet crane (164 feet) that support the road bridge collapsed one after another after of being raised instead for a crane, the Yonhap news agency reported.
Ko Kyung-Man, a Antseong fire officer, said four people had died, including two Chinese citizens, and six were injured, including five who were in critical condition. The five also included a Chinese citizen.
“They were working to install a terrace on the bridge,” KO said a televised informative session. “Every 10 were on the deck … and fell on both sides when it collapsed.”
Announcer YTN Dramatic images were transmitted that show a cover of an imposing bridge collapsing on the site.
Rescue workers were seen at the site by examining twisted metal struts and fractured concrete slabs under the columns of the road bridge.
The interim president, Choi Sang-Mok, called to mobilize all staff and resources available to rescue missing persons and guarantee security measures to avoid more damage, said his office.
The National Fire Agency said it has mobilized three helicopters and almost 150 officials for the search and rescue operation, and the Ministry of Transportation said it has sent a team of officials to the scene.
Mortal accidents continue to occur regularly in industrial sites in South Korea, which introduced a law in 2022 to address security lapses and punish company management if a worker is killed at work.
At the beginning of February, six people died in a fire at the construction site of a hotel in the port city of Busan, with about 100 people evacuated, including 14 workers taken safe by a helicopter after they had taken refuge in a roof .
In June of last year, a fire in a lithium battery factory that the authorities blamed for quality control failures and inadequate safety training killed 23 workers.
The data published in March by the Ministry of Labor of South Korea showed that 598 industrial workers died in 2023, and the construction sector represents almost half, or 303, although the number of deaths for death was less than 644 in 2022.
