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A 49-year-old worker died after being trapped under a large metal cylindrical pipe between a trailer and a lorry at Defu industrial estate on Friday (May 27), reported The Straits Times (ST).

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) is currently investigating the case.

What happened?

MOM told ST that the worker was an employee of Good Year Contractor working at a building occupied by Lik Kng Contractor, located at 18 Defu Avenue 2.

A lorry crane that was lifting and unloading large metal cylindrical pipes, known as propeller shafts, fell onto its side.

Following which, one of the shafts on the lorry crane rolled off and hit the worker.

The worker's leg was pinned to the ground as a result.

SCDF's rescue

A Facebook post by Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) on May 27 stated that they were activated to rescue the worker at about 1:05 pm that day.

Arriving at the scene, SCDF firefighters and Emergency Medical Services from Paya Lebar Fire Station immediately assessed the situation and promptly rendered medical assistance to stabilise the trapped worker.

The rescuers from the elite Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (DART) were also activated and worked with the fire station crew.

They used two air lifting bags to lift the pipe.

Once the man was freed, an SCDF ambulance conveyed him to Tan Tock Seng Hospital.

Unfortunately, the man died in the hospital on the same day, MOM updated.

The man's employer, Good Year Contractor, has since been ordered to halt all lifting operations.

25th workplace death this year

This was the 25th workplace death recorded in 2022, ST reported.

Between Jan. 1 and May. 6, there were a total of 20 deaths recorded. MOM previously said that many of these 20 deaths could have been prevented if basic safety and health measures were followed.

The latest incident at Defu Avenue 2 happened after Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong called out the spate of workplace deaths in Singapore this year, with 10 deaths in April alone.

This trend is "far too many, and not acceptable," Lee wrote in his Facebook post on May 9.

The manpower ministry, along with Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) Council, National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and industry partners had called for a safety time-out (STO) earlier this month.

STOs usually involve taking a break from work so that the senior management can engage with workers and unions in reinforcing WSH processes and look into ways to ensure workplace safety.

WSH Council Chairman John Ng commented on the number of workplace deaths on May 8:

"This is why I strongly urge all companies to answer this STO call to review your processes, communicate with your workers, and implement necessary control measures to uphold good WSH standards, particularly in preventing falls from height, working around fragile surfaces, and the safe use of machinery such as forklifts."

According to ST, by mid-May, more than 12,000 companies conducted a safety time-out (STO).

WSH aims to reduce workplace fatalities to a rate below one per 100,000 workers by 2028, as announced in the WSH 2028 Tripartite Strategies Committee's report.

Mothership has reached out to MOM for a statement.

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Top images taken from SCDF/FB.