Jung Hee-min, CEO of POSCO Engineering & Construction, said on the 29th that he feels a "devastated heart and a heavy sense of responsibility" regarding the series of on-site fatalities that have occurred this year.
POSCO Engineering & Construction issued an apology in a statement from CEO Jung Hee-min on the same day, expressing deep condolences to the deceased who tragically lost their life in the accident that occurred at the "Hamyang-Changnyeong Expressway construction site" yesterday, and sincerely apologizing to the bereaved families.
He further stated, "This year, we have caused great concern due to severe disasters occurring at our company's construction sites, and the fact that another fatal accident has occurred once again makes me feel a devastated heart and a heavy sense of responsibility."
CEO Jung noted, "We are actively cooperating with relevant authorities to investigate the exact cause of the accident and will spare no support needed for the bereaved families who are engulfed in deep sorrow."
He also stated, "Immediately after the accident yesterday, we halted all work at every site of the company and conducted an emergency safety inspection across the entire company, stopping work indefinitely until safety is thoroughly confirmed."
He added, "Furthermore, we will fully reassess latent risk factors from a zero base to prevent similar accidents and establish a disaster prevention safety system so that workers, who come to work for their livelihood, can work and leave safely."
CEO Jung emphasized, "Company employees will mobilize all necessary resources and capabilities to make the safety of all workers, including those from partner companies, a top priority, and we will take this as an opportunity for fundamental renewal to ensure that such tragedies do not happen again, risking the company's future while committing to a transformation of our safety system."
Earlier, President Lee Jae-myung addressed the Cabinet meeting on the same morning, mentioning the fact that workers have died due to a series of industrial accidents at POSCO Engineering & Construction sites this year, and criticized, "If deaths continue to occur in the same manner, it ultimately means allowing death, and to put it harshly, it is akin to murder with the awareness of potential consequences in legal terms."
The day before, a worker in his 60s died after being caught in a drilling machine (construction equipment that drills into the ground) while reinforcing the slope at the construction site of the Uiryeong Interchange on the Gyeongnam Hamyang-Ulsan Expressway, which is being constructed by POSCO Engineering & Construction.
At the construction sites of POSCO Engineering & Construction, there have been four severe accidents resulting in the deaths of four people this year, including a fall accident at an apartment construction site in Gimhae, Gyeongnam in January, a collapse accident at the construction site of the Shin Ansan Line in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province in April, and another fall accident at a Daegu residential complex construction site.