Construction manager jailed over worker's death during demolition works

SINGAPORE: A construction manager who instructed workers to follow an unsafe demolition sequence was jailed for 11 months on Wednesday (Jun 15).

During demolition works in 2019, a floor slab on the second floor that was supported only on one end fell, killing one of the workers and seriously injuring another.

Kong Chiew Fook, 55, pleaded guilty to one charge of performing a negligent act that endangered the safety of others.

He had more than 30 years of experience in the construction industry and worked for Springview Enterprises at the time of the incident.

In a statement after the sentencing, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) reminded all contractors of the need for thorough risk assessments for any demolition works.

"The sequence of demolition and control measures must be clearly communicated to the team and strictly adhered to during the demolition process," said Mr Sebastian Tan, MOM's director of occupational safety and health inspectorate.

WHAT HAPPENED

The court heard that Kong was the person in charge of the reconstruction of a two-storey semi-detached house at Aroozoo Avenue in Kovan.

On Mar 4, 2019, Kong instructed three employees - the deceased worker Mr Santo and two others, Mr Ddin and Mr Ponnir - to hack walls at the site.

As part of the day's work, they were told to hack the parapet wall of a balcony on the second floor. After giving the instructions, Kong left for another work site.

At about 1pm, Mr Ponnir erected a one-tier scaffold as a working platform to hack the top of the wall of the balcony, and Mr Ddin started hacking there.

At about 1.40pm, Mr Santo returned from his break and took over the hacking while Mr Ddin went for a short break.

At that moment, the floor slab of the balcony suddenly collapsed. Mr Santo was standing on the floor slab, while Mr Ponnir was on the scaffold.

The floor slab slipped as it fell, pinning Mr Santo under it. The scaffold also fell, throwing Mr Ponnit out. He landed about 2m away from Mr Santo.

Other workers heard the impact of the fallen floor slab and rushed to the backyard. About five workers tried to lift the slab to extricate Mr Santo, but were unsuccessful.

An excavator was eventually used to lift the slab up high enough for metal debris to be placed beneath, and for Mr Santo to be pulled out.

Mr Santo was pronounced dead at the scene. His cause of death was found to be head injuries.

Mr Ponnir was taken to the hospital with serious injuries, including fractures at his hip, elbow and wrist. He was hospitalised for almost two months.

NEGLIGENCE

Kong was overseeing the demolition works at the site, plans for which had been approved by the Building and Construction Authority.

Investigations showed that the demolition plans clearly indicated the works should be carried out in strict compliance with the code of practice on demolition.

Kong was aware that the top-down demolition method, which proceeds from roof to ground, must be used to ensure structural stability.

Instead, he had instructed the workers to follow an unsafe demolition sequence by hacking away supporting walls on the ground level before demolishing the balcony floor slab.

This was done about one month before the incident.

"By removing the supporting walls on the ground level, the balcony floor slab on level two was thus left in a cantilevered position without any supporting pillars and was susceptible to collapse," court documents stated.

Kong had "no reasonable cause" for this and only assumed that the floor slab was strong enough to hold on its own based on his experience, according to court documents.

MOM prosecutor Mohd Fadhli sought 12 to 14 months' jail for Kong, arguing that as the workers were demolishing concrete structures, adherence to established practice was vital.

Mr Fadhli argued that given Kong's industry experience, he would have known that there was a risk of the cantilevered structure collapsing.

Defence lawyer Marshall Lim said his client was "truly saddened" by the death of a worker in his care, and had an "impeccable" safety record before the incident.

In sentencing, District Judge Janet Wang said that Kong was lulled into a false sense of security when the slab remained cantilevered apparently without issue, until the day of the incident.

Springview and its director Heng Kong Chuan also face charges for failing to take reasonable steps to ensure the safety of workers, said MOM.

Kong could have been jailed for up to two years, fined up to S$30,000 or both under the Workplace Safety and Health Act.