Human error caused metro rail site accident: report

C Shivakumar

Chennai:

Human error was the cause for the accident at metro rail site near Pachayappa’s College on the Poonamallee road that resulted in the death of a migrant labourer and injuries to six others, according to an initial enquiry report probing the incident.

Chennai Metro Rail General Manager (construction) V Somasundaram told Express on Monday that the initial findings of the report was that the operator mishandled the crane which resulted in the crane boom, that was holding 25 tonne of steel rods, snap and fall on the workers.

“It was the human failure and not the machine which failed,” he said.

Somasundaram said the crane boom failed because the operator operated it wrongly. “Any lifting device has to be perpendicular while taking the load. But in this case it was used with a 30 degree inclination. The operator used it horizontally instead of using it perpendicularly,” said Somasundaram.

He said the final report on the metro rail accident near Pachyappa’s  college will be submitted after a week. “Once the final report is ready, we will take it up with the concerned authorities,” he said.

To a query on whether metro rail is mulling to change the contractor or sub-contractor involved in the incident, he said the main issue is to take remedial measures to prevent such things does not happen again. “We will take up the issue with the contractors once we get the final report,” he said.

He also said that nearly 90 per cent of cranes have been certified by metro rail and the work in Pachayappa’s college will resume tomorrow.

He also said the safety audit report on cranes will be submitted with in two days. “It will first be submitted to General Consultants and then we will get it,” he said.