2 Hong Kong sewer workers die after suspected exposure to hydrogen sulphide while underground
- Chief Executive John Lee says full investigation under way to determine why subcontract workers had ventured underground and whether safety rules followed
- Pair rescued from four-metre-deep manhole chamber, with development chief saying standard procedures do not require workers to access such areas
Two Hong Kong sewer workers have died after suspected exposure to hydrogen sulphide while underground, prompting authorities to temporarily suspend related cleaning operations.
“Everyone has a responsibility to improve industrial safety, including site owners and workers, [we also need] an effective management system,” he said ahead of his weekly Executive Council meeting. “I hope a safety culture can become part of the norm, and everyone will work according to safety guidelines.”
The two men, aged 26 and 34, were found unconscious late on Monday night inside a four-metre-deep (13 feet) manhole chamber.
Development minister Bernadette Linn Hon-ho told lawmakers on Tuesday morning that workers did not need to enter the sewers according to standard procedures, and were only required to use a high-pressure hosepipe to clean the drains from outside.
The workers were cleaning the sewage drains at Yuen Wo Playground in Sha Tin on Monday night, along with two other colleagues.
Another colleague alerted police just before midnight that the pair had lost consciousness underground.
Firefighters rescued the unconscious pair, who were taken to Prince of Wales Hospital in Sha Tin but certified dead soon after arrival.
The cause of death would be determined by a postmortem, a police spokesman said.
Initial investigation suggested the pair had passed out after breathing in hydrogen sulphide, a toxic gas.
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The other two workers, who had also entered the manhole chamber, were able to climb out on their own and were taken to hospital.
Development chief Linn said a key focus of the investigation was why the men had gone underground, as she pledged to follow up on the case.
All underground drainage cleaning works were temporarily suspended following the deaths to ensure all contractors and workers were well aware of standard procedures, she said.
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The Development Bureau said on Tuesday that it had suspended the contractors linked to the incident from tendering for public works.
The contractors would be required to conduct an independent safety audit to review their safety management system, then submit an improvement action plan and implement the necessary changes before authorities would consider lifting the suspension, it added.
The bureau said the government was investigating the incident, with the contractors potentially facing further regulatory actions based on the outcome of the inquiry.
Possible penalties included an extended tendering suspension period or the contractors’ removal from the list of approved companies for public works, it said.
Director of drainage services Mok Wing-cheong also expressed his condolences, pledging to provide immediate support to the families affected and the contractor.
An investigation by the Drainage Services Department, Labour Department and police is under way.
