After rebar collapsed underground at the Sinansan Line construction site at Yeouido Station in Seoul, killing one worker and injuring two, the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) and police launched an investigation into the builder POSCO E&C.
On the 18th, the ministry said, "The Occupational Accident Prevention Guidance Division of the Seoul Southern District Office and the Metropolitan Serious Accident Investigation Division of the Seoul Regional Office have launched an investigation into POSCO E&C and others to determine whether there were violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the Serious Accidents Punishment Act."
Earlier, at about 1:22 p.m. that day, a report came in that rebar had collapsed at a point 70 meters underground at the Sinansan Line subway construction site in front of Exit 2 of Yeouido Station on Seoul Subway Line No. 5. Of the seven people buried while working below, A (53), an employee of a subcontractor, was found in cardiac arrest and taken to a hospital but died. Two men in their 30s and 60s, also with the subcontractor, were injured. The others were all rescued by the fire authorities at about 2:52 p.m.
The accident was reported to have occurred when a rebar structure installed at the top of the underground tunnel collapsed during concrete pouring. POSCO E&C was in charge of the construction.
Song Chi-young, president of POSCO E&C, visited the accident site that day and said, "As the company's top official, I bow my head and offer my deepest apology for the death of a precious colleague in the accident."
This year, accidents have continued at POSCO E&C. Starting with an apartment construction site in Gimhae in Jan., there have been four fatal accidents in total, including the Sinansan Line collapse in Gwangmyeong and a mixed-use residential site in Daegu in Apr., and the Hamyang–Ulsan Expressway construction site in Jul.