Changwon City: "No Coordination or Notification Regarding Work and Subcontracting on the Day of the Sewer Pipe Accident"

Statement on the Public Inquiry Letter from the Minnochoeng Gyeongnam Headquarters

Changwon Special City in Gyeongnam reiterated on the 17th that it was unaware of whether work was being conducted on the day of the accident in which a sewage pipeline worker died last month in Jinyeong-eup, Gimhae City.

It also stated that there was no consultation or notification whatsoever regarding the subcontracting by the selected service provider to another company.

Changwon City made this announcement in response to a public inquiry submitted by the Gyeongnam branch of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions concerning the sewage pipeline worker fatality.

According to the Gyeongnam Fire Headquarters, on September 26, two workers, Mr. A in his 30s and Mr. B in his 20s, descended about 6 meters into a manhole to inspect the sewage pipeline, were found in cardiac arrest, transported to a hospital, but ultimately passed away.

The accident site falls under Gimhae’s administrative jurisdiction but is within the sewage treatment area managed by Changwon City.

The company to which the deceased workers belonged was a subcontractor of the firm commissioned by Changwon City to conduct the “Investigation of Flooding Causes around Saedari Relay Pump Station.”

Firefighters are pulling up people in need of rescue from the sewage pipeline.
[Photo by Gyeongnam Fire Headquarters]

On the 10th, the union asked Changwon City about ▲whether sewage pipeline information was provided to the commissioning agency ▲criteria for the service ordering company ▲standards for ensuring safety and health to prevent industrial accidents ▲whether subcontracting criteria were specified in the service contract ▲whether illegal subcontracting was determined regarding the actual service provider ▲plans to restrict future bidding participation by the companies involved in the accident, among other questions.

The city responded, “The scope of work was defined in the service contract to include manhole flow and water quality investigations, and before the investigation began, status data including the type of sewage pipeline, diameter, and manhole depth were provided.”

It also stated that the contractor who signed the service contract was aware that the work location was inside the pipeline.

Furthermore, “The original service period was from June 15 to September 12, 2023, but on the 8th, we notified a temporary suspension of the service after accepting the contractor’s request to halt work due to difficulties caused by pipeline sediment,” emphasizing, “The actual service provider entered the pipeline arbitrarily without prior notice or consultation.”

The city added, “The service order was conducted according to standards related to construction engineering fees,” and “The contractor holds technical qualifications in industrial safety and water quality management in the water supply and sewage sector and is also registered as a public sewage technical diagnosis specialist institution.”

“At the time of contract signing, we also received a safety and health assurance pledge from the contractor, which included a commitment to fully comply with safety and health-related laws and regulations and to accept legal measures without objection in the event of a serious accident.”

Regarding the subcontracting by the contractor to another company, the city said, “We were completely unaware as there was no prior notification or consultation with Changwon City,” adding, “Overall matters related to subcontracting are currently under investigation by relevant authorities, and we will take action based on the results.”

A city official said, “We deeply regret the tragic accident resulting in loss of life,” and “As previously stated, we will continue to actively cooperate with investigations by relevant authorities.”

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