Engineering manager dies of his injuries 3 days after blast in switchgear room at Tuas incineration plant

SINGAPORE: A National Environment Agency (NEA) officer died of his injuries on Sunday (Sep 26) morning after a blast in an electrical switchgear room at Tuas incineration plant on Thursday.

The officer, an executive engineering manager, was in the switchgear room with two others when the blast happened. 

He is the second officer to die after the blast. The first officer, a 65-year-old senior engineering manager, was pronounced dead at the scene on Thursday by a Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) paramedic.

"The third officer, our engineering manager, continues to be given medical care in the hospital’s intensive care unit," said NEA, which operates the incineration plant.

Firefighters responded to a fire at the plant at about 3.15pm on Thursday. SCDF said then that the fire involved a chimney fan switch in the switchgear room. About 80 people had self-evacuated from the premises.

Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu said on Thursday that all three officers are Singaporeans."The explosion was contained within the electrical room and did not spread to the rest of the premises," she added. 

NEA said on Sunday it has been in "daily contact" with the officers' families to provide all possible assistance.

"All three NEA officers who were in the switchgear room are senior members of the plant’s electrical maintenance branch, each with more than 35 years in service, and have contributed at (Tuas incineration plant) for many years," said NEA in its update on Sunday.

The plant's operations have been "wound down" since Thursday after the incident. 

NEA said it is working closely with the Ministry of Manpower, SCDF, other technical agencies, as well as electrical engineering experts to investigate the cause of the blast. 

"Investigations are ongoing and more information will be made known once investigations are concluded," it added.