Every part of site must be safe

ACONSTRUCTION worker died and four more were seriously injured when the pedestrian bridge at KL Eco City, which is under construction, collapsed recently. The troubling fact is that it is not the first time that construction sites have posed a danger to workers and the public. The list is worrisome. In 2009, the roof of a stadium in Terengganu collapsed, twice. In 2013, part of the Second Penang Bridge fell away while under construction, killing one and injuring three. The following year, a 300-tonne concrete span collapsed at a Mass Rapid Transit site, killing two workers. In August this year, a crane fell in Shah Alam, killing a member of the public, while earlier in May, a floor gave way in a building under construction in Petaling Jaya. The list goes on.

Some have said that in the rush for First World infrastructure, Malaysia’s Third World mentality is simply unable to cope. It is fair to assume that supervision of worksites and workers is wanting, leaving much of it to the workers, who are often foreigners with minimal skills. Or, could it be that the engineers employed are less than fully competent, and worksite supervisors are inadequately trained? For, such collapses occurred at sites where the projects call for highly competent and very experienced engineers. As the examples given indicate, these are mega projects that require modern construction methods. The most recent incident did not involve only the collapse of a pedestrian bridge, but saw parts of the yet-tobe-completed building being brought down, too. When the construction is suspect, would one not expect completed buildings to just give way, as in the case of the

Highland Towers, which robbed the lives of almost 50 people? Are any of these “accidents” caused by corruption? Such suspicions are reasonable, given the uncovering of so many cases of corruption by the Malaysian Anti- Corruption Commission, involving hundreds of millions of ringgit over the past year alone. Between developers seeking wide profit margins and the greed of some civil servants, something has to give: naturally, whatever is being built. The Highland Towers tragedy smacked of such an instance where there is negligence on the part of the local council, the licensor. The developer and draftsman were also held liable, as well as several other parties, including the lending bank.

And yet, the law is clear. The Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 imposes stringent safety standards on the part of developers, contractors and employers. Hazards must be identified and the risks mitigated. Workers must be made aware of the conditions under which they work to ensure safety. Every part of the worksite must be secure. In theory, these collapsing formwork, falsework and propping assemblies should all be secure. But obviously, no, as horrendous incidents, like a 300-tonne formwork falling on top of workers, still happen. Blame must be partly borne by the licensing authorities, whose business it is to see that the law is not contravened and all danger is averted.