Rescuers work at the construction site of a bridge on the Seoul-Sejong Expressway, after it collapsed earlier in the day on Tuesday. Photo by Hong Gi-Won/Yonhap South/EPA-EFE
Four workers were killed when a bridge collapsed at a highway construction site in Anseong, South Korea, on Tuesday, injuring six others.
The incident happened on Tuesday morning about 40 miles south of the capital of Seoul when many of those killed and injured were buried under fallen slabs, authorities said. Advertisement
The construction incident happened during the beam installation for an overpass for a section of the Seoul-Sejong Expressway. Five of the 164-foot concrete spans collapsed after being lifted into place by a crane because the steel support failed.
“Looking at the [CCTV] video from the time of the accident, it seems that an unbalanced load (weight tilting to one side) acted during the installation of the beam,” Lee Song-kyu, president of the Korean Safety Experts Association, told New CivilEngineering.com.
He called for a thorough investigation of the incident.
Hyundai Engineering, the building at the construction site, apologized for the incident.
“We are actively cooperating with the relevant authorities to ensure a swift site recovery and a thorough investigation into the exact cause of the accident,” the company said in the statement.
South Korea’s Acting President Choi Sang-mok ordered that all available resources be made available to the rescue operations at the site. Advertisement
Five of the hurt suffered serious injuries, fire department officials said. Two of those who died were Chinese nationals.
