Worker electrocuted in factory washroom

A GARMENT worker was fatally electrocuted on Monday at the New Archid factory in Kandal province’s Ang Snuol distrcit after she accidentally came into contact with exposed wiring as she bathed in a restroom.

Kim Thet, 52, was showering in one of the factory’s bathrooms when she unknowingly touched exposed wiring near the door, electrocuting her and causing her to die at hospital later on, said Minh Sobundeth, Poeuk commune police chief.

He said that Thet was found naked in the men’s bathroom with a burned little finger after she she was heard yelling out for help, adding that workers were known to take showers to beat the heat on the factory floor.

“I think it is the mistake of the company, because of the exposed electrical wire,” he said. “It was only a little exposed, so no one could have noticed it.”

He said the factory had been asked to check its electrical wiring and that the commune police were sending a report to the district level. However, district police chief Mean Samnang said his officials were still collecting information that would be forwarded to the provincial court.

Orn Sopheap, a deputy general director at the factory, admitted that the factory was partly to blame for the faulty wiring, but also questioned Thet’s decision to shower in the men’s bathroom during work hours.

“We will let the district police do it legally and send it to the court,” he said. “We are not trying to close or hide the case.”