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Quon Hing Concrete Company Limited was fined $18,000 at Tsuen Wan Magistrates' Court today (December 4) for violation of the Factories and Industrial Undertakings (Confined Spaces) Regulation. The prosecution was launched by the Labour Department.
The case involved a fatal accident which occurred on November 16, 2006 at a workplace on Lantau Island. A worker was found unconscious while he was working inside the concrete mixing drum of a concrete mixing truck.
According to Section 5(1) of the regulation, the proprietor shall appoint a competent person to carry out an assessment of the working conditions in the confined space and make recommendations on measures to be taken in relation to safety and health of workers while working in that place. Any proprietor who fails to do so is liable to a fine of $200,000 and to imprisonment for 12 months.
Also, according to Section 6(1)(a)(i) of the regulation, the proprietor shall ensure no worker enters a confined space within the industrial undertaking for the first time until a risk assessment report has been received. Any proprietor who fails to do so is liable to a fine of $200,000 and to imprisonment for 12 months.
Ends/Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Issued at HKT 18:30
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