One Worker Dies, Another Seriously Injured While Removing Foreign Substances from Water Pipes in Gimhae

On the 15th, in Juchon-myeon, Gimhae-si, Gyeongnam, one man in his 30s died and another in his 50s was seriously injured while dredging a sewage pipe.

According to the Gimhae Western Police Station on the 16th, the two were found collapsed on the bottom of a sewage pipe about 5 meters below a roadside manhole cover around 9:40 p.m. that night.

They were employees of a sewage pipe management company contracted by the city hall, performing dredging work to remove foreign substances inside the sewage pipe.

The dredging work involves inserting a hose from a dredging vehicle to suction out debris accumulated in the pipe and using a high-pressure water jet to clear the pipeline, so no person normally enters the manhole directly.

The city hall called the company to carry out the work after receiving complaints about a foul odor coming from the manhole.

The work started around 3:40 p.m., and three city officials managing the work on site confirmed its completion around 5:20 p.m. before returning to city hall.

When the workers did not return, a company official inquired at city hall, and one city official went back to the site, where the two were found collapsed under the manhole.

One of the two, discovered about four hours after the work ended, had died, and the other was conscious at the time of discovery but is currently unconscious in the intensive care unit.

A police official stated, “Since this is work where no person is supposed to enter, the priority is to determine why the two were under the manhole and to confirm the exact cause of death, whether it was a fall or suffocation.” He added, “After determining the cause, an investigation will be launched into possible professional negligence involving the site supervisors and other related personnel.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.