Two people were killed after a construction crane collapsed onto a highway in Thailand, a day after a crane accident in another part of the country left 32 people dead.
The crane was being used to build an expressway in Samut Sakhon, a Bangkok suburb. Footage shows the moment the crane crashed onto the highway, crushing some cars and leaving a cloud of dust and debris on its trail.
Wednesday’s crane collapse in the north-eastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima had seen a crane fall on top of a moving train, leaving more than 60 people injured.
Construction works in both incidents are being handled by the same company, Italian-Thai Development, one of Thailand’s largest builders.
Italian-Thai Development put out a statement to Thailand’s stock exchange on Thursday afternoon, expressing its “deepest condolences” to those injured in the incident and the families of the deceased.
It added that it accepts full responsibility for providing compensation, and have begun a process of assessing damages.
“The company will review and improve safety measures to be more thorough and stringent, moving forward,” the statement added.
The incidents underscore how deadly construction accidents are common in the South East Asian nation, due in part to weak enforcement of safety standards and regulations.
Around 150 people have been killed over the past seven years in numerous accidents on a road improvement project from Bangkok to the south of the country.
The expressway where Thursday’s collapse happened had been nicknamed “Death Road” due to several accidents there in recent years, news agency AFP reported.
Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said he would address “negligence” in construction after Wednesday’s accident.
He said he ordered the transport ministry to revoke contracts and blacklist Italian-Thai Development, and also prosecute the company.
“This is shocking for the public and causing massive risks to assets and the safety of the people,” he said.
The State Railway of Thailand has also said it is suing Italian-Thai Development.
The company expressed regret after Wednesday’s train disaster and promised compensation to relatives of the dead and injured.
It was responsible for the construction of a Bangkok skyscraper that collapsed last March during an earthquake, when no other buildings in the city fell.
Last year the company’s president as well as several designers and engineers were charged with professional negligence over that incident.
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