Forklift driver at Hansol Paper dies after getting caught in 2 tons of paper rolls... Ministry of Labor begins investigation (comprehensive)

Commencement of investigation into violations of work stoppage, industrial safety law, and serious disaster punishment law

(Seocheon = Yonhap News) Reporter Byun Seon-jin = Police and labor authorities began an investigation after an accident in which an employee in his 30s died after being caught in a large paper roll at Hansol Paper's Janghangjang factory in Seocheon-gun, South Chungcheong Province.

According to the police and fire authorities on the 11th, at around 7:20 p.m. the previous day, Mr. A (31), a member of a partner company, got caught in a paper roll while working at the slitter process in the thermal block of the Janghangjang plant of Hansol Paper, Janghang-eup, Seocheon-gun.

It was found that while Mr. A was moving a paper roll with a forklift, the roll fell out of the forklift tongs and rolled. He got off the forklift to try to stop it, but ended up getting caught between the roll and the control panel equipment.

The fire department determined that this roll weighed about 2 tons.

The emergency team dispatched after receiving a report from fellow employees arrived at the scene in two minutes. Mr. A was conscious at the time, but complained of difficulty breathing and severe abdominal pain.

Mr. A's condition worsened while being transported to the regional trauma center at Wonkwang University Hospital in Iksan, Jeollabuk-do, and he went into cardiac arrest and died shortly after arriving at the hospital.

The police are investigating the exact circumstances of the accident, including whether safety rules were followed by factory officials.

The Boryeong Branch of the Ministry of Employment and Labor also announced in a press release that it had conducted an on-site investigation and suspended work immediately after the accident, and had begun an investigation into violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the Serious Accident Punishment Act.

Hansol Paper announced the occurrence of a serious accident on this day, saying, "We plan to identify the detailed cause after on-site inspection by police and Ministry of Employment and Labor officials," and added, "We are cooperating with the investigation by related agencies and plan to take necessary follow-up measures according to the results of the investigation."

This is not the first accident in which a worker died while working at the Hansol Paper Factory.

In July last year, a worker in his 30s who was working on transferring waste paper into a pulp maker tank at the Shintanjin factory in Daedeok-gu, Daejeon, died after falling into the machine through a hole in the switchgear.

At the Janghang Plant, in April 2019, a worker in his 20s from an affiliate died after getting caught in the machine while inspecting a machine that moved finished products alone.