Worker Deaths and Helicopter Crash: Safety Concerns Mount at Power Transmission Tower Construction Sites

A series of alarming accidents, including the deaths of two workers and a helicopter crash, at power transmission line construction sites in Gangwon-do has sparked calls for a comprehensive review of on-site safety management systems.

According to fire authorities and other sources on July 22, a private helicopter transporting materials crashed at a power transmission line construction site in Pung-gok-ri, Gagok-myeon, Samcheok-si, at 12:10 p.m. the previous day, July 21.

The accident left a 57-year-old worker on the ground, identified by the surname A, with bruises after being struck by debris. He was treated at a nearby hospital.

The pilot, a 59-year-old identified by the surname B, was the only person on board and reportedly sustained no injuries.

The helicopter was involved in concrete pouring work for a transmission tower and was transporting materials suspended from the aircraft.

It is understood that while flying at an altitude of 10 to 15 meters to deliver materials to the site, the helicopter was caught in a sudden gust of wind, struck tree branches, and crashed.

Previously, on June 13 at 2:40 p.m. in Cheongil-myeon, Hoengseong-gun, a worker in his 60s died after his body became entangled in a rope while dismantling insulators on a transmission tower, causing him to be dragged for about 10 meters before colliding with the tower.

The worker was reportedly dismantling an insulator, a key component that connects the transmission tower to the power line while preventing electricity from flowing into the steel structure, when the accident occurred.

Prior to that, on May 11 at 10:13 a.m., a worker in his 50s died at a transmission tower construction site in Jeongseon-eup, Jeongseon-gun, after falling 12 meters to the ground while dismantling temporary structures for the tower.

Experts have diagnosed an urgent need to strengthen practical safety management that accounts for the nature of high-risk work and to establish a field-oriented safety management system.

Choi Myeong-seon, head of the Occupational Safety and Health Bureau at the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), pointed out, "Power transmission line construction often takes place in remote locations through multi-level subcontracting, creating blind spots where the safety management system of the prime contractor does not properly reach the workers at the end of the chain. This structure is acting as a cause of recurring industrial accidents."

She emphasized, "As power transmission line construction is a representative high-risk job involving both work at heights and the operation of heavy machinery, responsibility for on-site safety management and command and supervision must be implemented more actively."

Jung Jin-woo, a professor of Safety Engineering at Seoul National University of Science and Technology, noted, "There is an aspect that can be evaluated as a side effect of laws and systems focused on punishment."

Professor Jung expressed concern, stating, "Since the implementation of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, as the punishment system has been strengthened, there is a strong tendency for safety management across industrial sites to focus on paperwork and avoiding penalties. If safety management remains formal and disconnected from the field, accidents will inevitably be left to chance."

He further advised, "Companies should focus on building practical industrial accident prevention capabilities that can protect workers rather than being preoccupied with avoiding sanctions. The government also needs to reorganize laws and systems in a direction that increases the effectiveness of on-site safety management, rather than focusing solely on strengthening punishment."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.