Debated in Parliament on 13 Apr 2015.
Mr Sitoh Yih Pin asked the Minister for Manpower whether he can provide an update on the investigations into the worksite incident on 24 February 2015 involving a crawler crane that had fallen into a house compound along Pheng Geck Avenue in Sennett Estate.
On 24 February 2015, a crawler crane toppled and fell into a house compound along Pheng Geck Avenue. Investigation on the incident is currently on-going to establish the cause of the incident.
Following the incident, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) had issued a stop work order for the work site. A full site inspection was conducted to identify and correct any unsafe work practices and to review all lifting plans and procedures to ensure that they are adequate. The stop work order was subsequently lifted on 2 March 2015 when all the safety requirements imposed were fully complied.
MOM had also required the contractor to engage an Authorised Examiner, who is a Professional Engineer, to conduct a thorough inspection on all cranes on-site to ensure that they are in good working condition. The Authorised Examiner had inspected and certified that the tower crane on-site was safe for use. As for mobile and crawler cranes, MOM has disallowed their use on-site until the contractor formulates a robust risk management plan and affirms that these cranes can be positioned such that any failure will be contained within the boundaries of the site and not affect residents in the surrounding areas.
MOM is concerned with the recent spate of crane-related incidents. Since the start of 2015, there were seven5 crane-related incidents, compared to one in the same period last year.
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To emphasise the importance of crane safety, MOM will be stepping up enforcement efforts. An enforcement operation targeting mobile and tower crane operations was conducted nationwide from 16 March to 2 April 2015 to arrest unsafe work practices involving cranes.
The industry has also indicated its commitment to keep our employees and general public safe. The WSH Council National Crane Safety Taskforce, Singapore Contractors Association Ltd (SCAL) and Singapore Crane Association (SCA), have jointly taken the lead to encourage their members to participate in a "Safety Time Out" (STO) which was held from 9 to 15 March 2015. During this STO, contractors and users of lifting equipment, especially tower and mobile cranes, took time off from their routine operations to take stock and review the measures in place to ensure safety.
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