Song Chi-young, CEO of POSCO E&C, bows his head at the scene of the Shinansan Line accident at Yeouido Station. Yonhap News TV Capture

Song Chi-young, CEO of POSCO E&C, visited the site of the Shinansan Line accident at Yeouido Station and bowed his head in apology.

A tragic collapse of rebar occurred at the underground construction site for the Shinansan Line double-track railway near Yeouido Station in Seoul on the 18th, resulting in seven workers being buried. One worker in his 50s was transported to the hospital in cardiac arrest due to the accident but ultimately died.

According to the police and fire authorities, at approximately 1:22 PM that day, a report was received stating that "rebar had collapsed and workers were crushed" at a depth of about 70-80 meters at the underground road construction site for the Shinansan Line, in front of Exit 2 of Subway Line 5 at Yeouido Station. The accident is presumed to have occurred when rebar fell during concrete pouring work.

One worker in his 50s among those buried died, and another worker in his 50s sustained an ankle injury and was taken to the hospital. A male worker in his 30s, a foreign national, escaped on his own and received treatment for abrasions on his wrist at the scene.

The remaining personnel evacuated to the vertical shaft underground, and then the fire authorities deployed 21 pieces of equipment and 83 personnel to rescue everyone by approximately 2:50 PM. Due to the aftermath of the accident, some roads in the direction of Ichon Station Road~Saetgang Station in Yeouido-dong, Yeongdeungpo-gu, were closed to traffic.

A rebar collapse accident occurred on the 18th at the underground construction site for the Shinansan Line double-track railway near Yeouido Station in Seoul, resulting in the tragic burial of seven workers. One worker in his 50s was transported to the hospital in cardiac arrest due to the accident but ultimately died. Yonhap News

Underground construction site for the Shinansan Line double-track railway near Yeouido Station in Seoul. Yeongdeungpo Police Station

POSCO E&C is the construction company for this section of the project. The company has a history of repeated fatal accidents at various construction sites even after the enforcement of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act. In April, there was also a fatal accident due to a tunnel collapse in the Gwangmyeong section of the Shinansan Line.

Around 6 PM, Song Chi-young, CEO of POSCO E&C, visited the site of the Shinansan Line accident at Yeouido Station and offered his apologies, stating, "I bow my head in apology for this serious accident. We will cooperate with the investigation."

The police plan to intensively investigate the construction company and site officials regarding negligence in safety management.

Hanmiilbo Editorial Department