Collapsed crane kills Cambodian worker at Bangkok construction site

Tragedy struck at a construction site in the Chatuchak district of Bangkok yesterday when a tower crane collapsed and killed a Cambodian worker. Thai news outlet Channel 7 reported that the crane’s sling was broken, causing the crane’s arm to crash down on the worker, 31 year old Sophanna.

Two other Cambodian workers were injured in the incident. One of the injured workers was brought to Paolo Hospital with minor injuries, while the other worker did not wish to go to the hospital.

Bangkok’s Deputy Permanent Secretary Dr. Wantanee Wattana, together with the director of Chatuchak district, Pornlert Penpass, went to inspect the site.

The building consists of a 29-storey office, a 3-storey auditorium, and a 7-storey car park. It was contracted on November 23, 2020, and the construction period started on January 15, 2021. The project is set to end on December 31, 2023, and the construction cost is 2.1 billion baht.

This is not the first time such an accident has occurred in Thailand’s construction industry, which struggles with its safety measures. Building work and construction work are among Thailand’s most dangerous professions.

Earlier this month, over 100 Burmese workers fled to safety as a four-storey building under construction in Bangkok collapsed. The third and fourth floors of the four-storey building collapsed onto the second floor.

Rescue workers searched through the rubble to find three trapped Burmese workers, one male and two female, who sustained fractures to the head and bodily wounds. Two more Burmese women fainted during the incident. All five were taken to Petcharavaj Hospital in Bangkok for treatment.

In November last year, a builder died from blood loss after pulling a grinding wheel out of his chest in Chon Buri. He tried to use the tool to cut steel when it is designed to cut stone, causing the wheel to snap and fly straight into his chest.

In March last year, a construction worker in Rayong province was killed when a gas pipe fell on top of him.