At the HD Hyundai Samho shipyard, a large rope used to moor a ship to a quay snapped, causing an accident that left one worker dead.
HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering said on the 23rd that "at subsidiary HD Hyundai Samho, during a berthing operation alongside a quay for a vessel on the 22nd, a serious industrial accident occurred in which one worker was struck by a mooring rope and died."
The accident occurred at about 11:25 a.m. on the 22nd at a quay inside the HD Hyundai Samho shipyard in Yeongam County, South Jeolla. A male worker in his 40s was performing a mooring operation to secure a ship to the quay when he was hit by a snapped heavy rope; he was transported to a hospital but was reported to have died the same day.
The Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) plans to investigate whether there were violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the Serious Accidents Punishment Act. The Mokpo Coast Guard is also investigating the circumstances of the accident.
HD Hyundai Samho said that immediately after the accident it halted all work using mooring ropes and preserved the scene in the area where the accident occurred. It also issued a companywide safety alert and plans to conduct special safety and health training.