300-tonne concrete span at MRT construction site falls, three workers feared dead

A picture of the fallen beam tweeted by the Fire and Rescue Department (@bombaJBPM).

PETALING JAYA: Three workers are feared dead after a 300-tonne concrete span collapsed at a MRT construction site in Kota Damansara Monday night.

In a statement, Mass Rapid Transit Corporation (MRT Corp) said the incident occurred at the MRT worksite within the former Rubber Research Institute site near Kota Damansara.

"The incident occurred at around 8.30pm while construction of the parapet was being carried out on the MRT elevated guideway.

"A span of the guideway had dislodged from its piers and fallen on the ground below. The span, which was made up of 14 units of segmented box girders, was 38m in length and weighed 300 tonnes.

"MRT Corp confirms that three workers are unaccounted for and are believed to be trapped underneath. Rescue efforts are currently on-going and an emergency response team is on standby at the site," it said.

It later revealed the names of the three workers unaccounted for, namely Bangladesh nationals Mohamad Faruk Khan, Mohammad Elahi Hossain and Mohammad Alauddin Mollik.

The Fire and Rescue Department's (@bombaJBPM) tweeted picture showing a K-9 unit at the site.

MRT Corp said no members of the public were involved in the incident as there was no access to the site and investigations have commenced to determine the cause of the incident.

"All work along Package V1 where the incident occurred has been suspended until further notice. The work package contractor for Package V1 is Syarikat Muhibbah Perniagaan dan Pembinaan Sdn Bhd," it said.

MRT Corp chief executive officer Datuk Wira Azhar Abdul Hamid, who was at the site, expressed deep regret over the incident.

"Although investigations are underway, MRT Corp assumes full responsibility for the incident. Once investigations are completed, action on those responsible will be taken," he said.

Selangor Fire and Rescue department operations director Mohd Sani Harul said they were alerted of the incident at about 9.46pm.

A K-9 unit was also spotted at the site of the incident, assisting rescue efforts.