DAVAO CITY – WITCO Construction and Development Corp. announced on Friday, April 28, that the project engineer and safety officer supervising the four Davao City Bulk Water Supply Project workers who inhaled toxic fumes while cleaning a pipeline recently had been permanently pulled out from the project.
The WITCO said in a statement that management is “deeply saddened” by the tragic incident where one worker died and three others were injured in Buhangin Proper here on April 21.
“Our project engineer and safety officer supervising the activity when the incident happened have been suspended and permanently pulled out from the project,” WITCO said.
WITCO said authorities are investigating the incident, determining those responsible, and providing prompt solutions to prevent similar incidents. The company will take full responsibility should there be any finding of negligence on the part of its supervising and safety officers on-site.
The company said it has started to undertake a comprehensive re-orientation among its project leads and workers to ensure strict compliance with the Occupational Safety and Health Standards, retraining their workforce, and reinforcing full adherence to the work permit system.
“We have reached out to the affected workers as well as to the family of the deceased and have started to provide them with the needed medical and financial support,” WITCO said.
The company added that the safety lapses identified in the investigation are now being addressed and that all the works related to the Davao City Bulk Water Supply Project have been temporarily suspended until they can fully implement corrective measures.
“The WITCO Construction and Development Corp. is committed to doing all that is necessary to ensure that this incident will never happen again. Our sincere apologies to all those who have been affected by this regretful incident,” the WITCO said.
The victims experienced difficulty breathing while working. Responders pulled out three workers from the pipeline and rushed them to the hospital where they are now in stable condition. The fourth was pronounced dead upon arrival.