JEDDAH, 7 October 2004 — Three South Asian workers were killed and one was seriously injured in a construction accident at Makkah Road Kilo 14 yesterday. The accident occurred at 11 a.m. as crews worked on installing a new sewer system for the area.
The workers, employed by Al-Mujama International Company, fell into the four-meter deep ditch, when the ground gave way as a result of a water main bursting directly underneath them. The workers fell into the churning mix of mud, asphalt and water. They drowned in water shallow enough to stand in, but due to the force of the water rushing from the pipe, they could not surface.
According to witnesses, the flow of the water and the lack of visibility due to the mud and dirt, kept other workers from coming to their rescue.
When police arrived within 15 minutes, they found all four men unconscious and rescue efforts under way as bystanders and workers tried to help them. One worker was revived at the scene and transported to an area hospital where he now remains in intensive care. Tests are being conducted to see if the survivor sustained any brain damage.
According to a doctor at King Fahd Hospital, permanent brain damage may occur if the brain is deprived of oxygen for four minutes. It is unclear for how long the surviving man was submerged.
Arab News attempted to contact Al-Mujama International Company, but their offices were closed following the accident. Last year, a Sri Lankan worker, Sukun Mia, also drowned when the walls of the ditch he was working on, caved in on him as a result of a water main bursting. In that incident in the Ruwais District, two other men were injured.
Meanwhile, a Pakistani worker was killed and two of his fellow workers were critically injured when part of an under-construction building collapsed, Al-Watan reported. The accident occurred at 11 a.m. on Monday when people were at work on the building situated on Tahliya Street near Al-Anam garden in Jeddah.
