Skyway Extension project owner, contractors liable for girder collapse: DOLE

by ABS-CBN News, 23 Nov 2020

MANILA – The owner and contractors of the construction project at the Skyway Extension site in Muntinlupa are liable for the collapse of a steel girder last Saturday, an official of the labor department said Monday.

The accident, which left 1 dead and 4 others injured, was reported to have been caused by a crane that tilted and fell on the girder, which spans the length of two posts of the northbound lane of the Skyway extension project.

Traffic enforcers and warning signs could not be seen in videos of the accident that were uploaded on social media, said Engr. Noel Binag, executive director of DOLE’s occupational safety and health center.

“Ang unang-unang napansin natin sa video ay parang walang nag-enforce ng traffic, so tingin ko na-compromise din ang public safety. They allowed traffic to continue despite critical activity ng ating (of the) construction,” he told ABS-CBN’s Teleradyo.

(The first thing I observed from the video is no one seems to be enforcing traffic, so I think public safety was compromised.

“Considering ang oras na yan umaga, alam naman natin ang volume ng traffic pagka Sabado ng umaga, rush hour yan.”

(Considering it was morning and we know how heavy the volume of traffic is during Saturday morning, it’s rush hour.)

San Miguel Corporation (SMC) on Sunday extended assistance and its President apologized to the victims.

The company is required to file an incident report to the labor department within 24 hours or face penalty, Binag said.

The DOLE will then validate the firm’s report and make a technical report that can be used by the victims’ families to file a complaint, he added.

“Sa ating batas, jointly liable yung (project) owner, main contractor and sub contractor, kung meron,” he said.

(Under the law, the owner, main contractor and sub contractor are jointly liable.)