Bangladeshi worker dies when a piece of excavator falls on him at Ubi construction site

A 37-year-old Bangladeshi migrant worker has died after part of an excavator fell on him at a construction site in Ubi on Thursday (Apr 22).

The man was assisting his co-worker to lift some steel frames using an excavator fitted with a concrete breaker attachment, when the attachment detached and fell on him, said a Ministry of Manpower (MOM) spokesperson on Friday.

He was taken to the Changi General Hospital, where he died from his injuries.

The accident occurred at a worksite at Ubi Road 3 and Ubi Avenues 1 and 2.

The man’s employer and the occupier of the worksite is Right Construction, a company that does general building, civil engineering and piling works.

“MOM is investigating the incident, and has instructed the occupier to stop the use of excavators in the worksite,” said the ministry spokesperson.

This is the latest in a spate of workplace accidents resulting in fatalities this year.

In February, three workers died from injuries sustained in an explosion involving potato starch powder at an industrial building in Tuas.

An inquiry committee was set up to look into the incident, and is expected to produce its findings in three to six months, said Senior Minister of State for Manpower Zaqy Mohamad last month.

The Tuas incident followed a safety time-out on the use of machinery after what Mr Zaqy described as an “extremely alarming” number of workplace deaths in February.

Earlier this week, Mr Zaqy announced that MOM will be launching an operation to conduct 400 safety inspections in May and June in high-risk sectors, including the construction, manufacturing, transport and marine industries.

This is to ensure that workplaces are safe, and in particular, that workers operating machinery are qualified and trained.