One construction worker was killed and four other people injured at a Kaohsiung MRT tunnel site yesterday afternoon, just hours after the city celebrated the completion of another MRT tunnel.
The accident occurred at the MRT LUR 05 tunnel site situated at the intersection of Chungshan Road and Tayeh North Road in Shaoguang District.
Two brakeless carts carrying heavy loads of earth careened down the tunnel and slammed into a platform truck, knocking Huang Hung-chou (黃鴻州) off the truck. Huang was run over by at least one of the carts.
Three construction workers, Chen Chung-yi (陳忠義), Liu Chao-min (劉昭明), and Fang Yu-yi (方玉儀) and a Japanese engineer were also injured in the accident and treated at a local hospital for broken bones.
The police are investigating the cause of the accident.
The Kaohsiung City Bureau of Labor Affairs ordered a halt to construction at the site after the accident. Construction will not resume until the cause of the accident is determined and the site has been recertified as safe.
The accident was a stark contrast to the ceremony to celebrate the completion of the LUR 07 tunnel, the first tunnel finished by making use of shield-mechanics.
Kaohsiung Mayor Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), Kaohsiung Council Speaker Chu An-hsiung (朱安雄) and Vice Minister of Transportation and Communications Oliver Yu (游芳來) presided over the ceremony.
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