SINGAPORE – The two workers who died after inhaling toxic gas at PUB’s Choa Chu Kang Waterworks were not wearing respirator masks, said a Ministry of Manpower (MOM) investigating officer on Oct 2.
Several other safety protocols were also not followed, including the requirement to ventilate the area before entry, said Muhd Hafidz, a senior investigating officer at MOM’s occupational safety and health division.
He was testifying on the first day of a coroner’s inquiry into the deaths of the two workers.
Malaysian Izzat Naqiuddin Dowod, 24, and Indian national Srinivasan Sivaraman, 40, collapsed after inhaling hydrogen sulphide, which is produced by sludge, a by-product of the water treatment process. Hydrogen sulphide is colourless and can be lethal even at low concentrations.
The incident happened on the morning of May 23, 2024, when Izzat and a third worker entered the enclosed passageway of the pulsator tank to turn off a valve controlling the drainage of sludge.
Sivaraman likely entered the passageway shortly after to check on them, said the investigator. He added that both Izzat and Sivaraman were not wearing respirator masks when they were rescued.
Both men died of their injuries in May 2024, while the third worker survived.
Izzat was employed by cleaning company Stargroup Est, while Sivaraman was a cleaning operations manager at Supersonic Maintenance Services.
Hafidz told the court that a cleaning team, including the two workers who died, were supposed to carry out cleaning works on the pulsator tanks that day.
Safety protocols require workers entering the passageway of the pulsator tank to have a personal gas detector and a personal torchlight. They must also have a buddy who is supposed to stand outside the passageway.
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