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Firm fined S$150,000 for failing to ensure workers’ safety

SINGAPORE — A bid to replace an extremely flammable gas in the air cooling unit of a factory went awry, and resulted in a blast that left one worker dead and two injured in August 2012.

SINGAPORE — A bid to replace an extremely flammable gas in the air cooling unit of a factory went awry, and resulted in a blast that left one worker dead and two injured in August 2012.

Yesterday, a district court ordered engineering company Sing Wah Enterprise to pay a fine of S$150,000 for failing to ensure the safety of the three workers.

In October 2011, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) issued a circular on phasing out existing air cooling units using hydrocarbon as a refrigerant.

The gas was particularly flammable, and posed a potential safety hazard, said the SCDF.

Upon receiving the circular, Toshiba Tec Singapore, which manufactures electronic products, engaged Sing Wah Enterprise to replace the hydrocarbon refrigerant in a cooling unit at Toshiba Tec’s factory with a safer gas.

On the morning of Aug 15, 2012, three workers were sent to the factory in Ang Mo Kio to carry out two tasks: Wash the cooling unit with a chemical solution and change the gas.

Mr S Thirumurugan Subramaniam took charge of the washing, while Mr Chong Tek Choi connected several hoses to the cooling unit and discharged the gas outside of the room that they were working in.

Mr Chong also opened several valves to speed up the gas discharging process. This caused the gas to collect inside the room.

All these tasks were carried out without any coordination.

The blast was sparked when the third worker, Abadul Jaynal Sikder, later switched on a vacuum cleaner to help with the washing process, and a spark ignited the gas.

Mr Chong and Mr Subramaniam leapt out of the open window, while Sikder ran out the door. All three were sent to the Singapore General Hospital, where Sikder died from his injuries four days later.

Investigations showed that Sing Wah had not provided a risk assessment or safe work procedures for the gas conversion works assigned to the workers.

The workers also did not have a copy of the safety data sheet on the gas, which would have instructions on its safe handling — storing the gas in a tank, instead of releasing it into the open.

Also the equipment used, such as the vacuum cleaner, was not “explosion proof”, said Ministry of Manpower prosecutor Delvinder Singh.

“The work method that was adopted was wrong … no refrigerant should be released into the external atmosphere and proper ventilation should be in place before the commencement of such works,” he added.

Slamming the “cavalier” attitude adopted by Sing Wah, Mr Singh said this was not a case of a simple fire at a worksite. “It could have been mitigated with proper safety procedures … the level of control and accountability was not there,” he said.

Defence lawyer Peter Moe urged the court to impose a lenient fine, stressing that Sing Wah had not shied away from its responsibility, and instead compensated the workers S$350,000 in medical bills and repatriation fees.

For flouting the Workplace Safety and Health Act, corporate bodies could be fined up to S$500,000.

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