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SMRT train kills 2 staff on the tracks to check on signal alarm

SINGAPORE — In what was the most serious fatal accident to date involving SMRT staff in the line of duty, two employees carrying out routine maintenance work on a track near Pasir Ris MRT Station were run over by a train yesterday.

SCDF officers removing a body from the scene of the train accident at Pasir Ris MRT Station, which left two SMRT employees dead. Photo: Koh Mui Fong

SCDF officers removing a body from the scene of the train accident at Pasir Ris MRT Station, which left two SMRT employees dead. Photo: Koh Mui Fong

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SINGAPORE — In what was the most serious fatal accident to date involving SMRT staff in the line of duty, two employees carrying out routine maintenance work on a track near Pasir Ris MRT Station were run over by a train yesterday.

Muhammad Asyraf Ahmad Buhari, 24, and Nasrulhudin Najumudin, 26, who had joined SMRT only in January and were undergoing on-the-job training, were killed about 150m from the station after they were hit by a train approaching the platform. They were part of a team deployed to investigate an alarm linked to a signalling equipment that went off.

The train, which was manned by a driver and carrying 35 commuters at the time, was travelling at 60kmh on auto mode. Following the accident, which happened at about 11.10am, the MRT station was shut for about three hours and train services between Pasir Ris and Tanah Merah were disrupted. Shuttle bus services were activated during the disruption.

SMRT and the police are investigating. TODAY understands that the victims were on the other side of the track from the dedicated walkway for maintenance staff when they were hit by the train. However, SMRT Corporation chief executive officer Desmond Kuek maintains that the two victims were walking behind their supervisor and the 15-member team were walking in single file on the 0.5m wide walkway.

The team — comprising members from the permanent way and signalling teams — had been given permission to access the track. They were 50m away from the location of the signalling equipment at the time of the tragedy.

Speaking to the media after the accident, Mr Kuek said that he was “deeply saddened” by the two deaths.

“Our thoughts and our prayers are with their families and we’re extending all the support and assistance that we can to help them through this time of grief,” he said. “There are questions on what happened and how it could have happened. The investigation is ongoing and we’re also supporting the police and Ministry of Manpower as they conduct their investigation and we should be able to get to some of the reasons why this has happened.”

He added the transport operator was reviewing its safety protocols to see what improvements could be made.

In a Facebook post last night, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, extending his condolences to the families of the two workers, said: “We understand that faults and malfunctions do happen in our train system, and generally take them in our stride. But it is different when two young men lose their lives in a workplace accident.”

He added: “Whether it turns out to be an unforeseeable mishap, an individual lapse or a system problem, we must do our best to ensure this does not happen again.”

Details of the accident remained sketchy, but Mr Lee Ling Wee, managing director of SMRT Trains, said maintenance crew are deployed to the tracks during service hours “a few times a month” while Mr Kuek noted these works are supervised.

“This is standard, whenever there is a track fault, regardless whether it’s revenue service or during engineering hours, we have to investigate every fault,” he said. “Exactly how they got onto the track or got close enough to the oncoming train that was moving in the direction opposite to them is the issue that we’re trying to establish with the witnesses.”

Mr Lee also said counselling was being provided to the staff directly involved.

National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) secretary-general Chan Chun Sing said the National Transport Workers’ Union will do what is necessary to support affected workers and their families. Both Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure Khaw Boon Wan, who is also Transport Minister, and Minister of State for Manpower Sam Tan also said their respective ministries are gathering details to understand how the accident happened. Mr Khaw also said his ministry will look into how safety procedures can be improved.

In a media statement, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said it was “deeply saddened” by the death of the SMRT staff. “LTA will be assisting with investigation into the incident and will extend our assistance to their next-of-kin where necessary,” it added.

Asked about compensation, Mr Kuek said: “This is something that we will deal with as part of our typical HR process.”

About 10,000 to 15,000 commuters were affected by the train service disruption resulting from the accident.

In 2010, 48-year-old SMRT technician Chia Teck Heng succumbed to injuries and died days after he was hit by an LRT train while conducting maintenance work on the track.

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