Two people killed in every high-rise construction

JAKARTA (JP): The construction of high-rise buildings in Jakarta takes its toll, with at least two lives claimed at each construction, an official in charge of health problems and work safety of PT Waskita Karya said.

The figure could be higher because what was revealed by the official, Zainal Bhakti, is only the number of victims working on projects built by the company.

Zainal said most of the fatal accidents were due to carelessness and tiredness on the part of the construction workers.

"Many of the accidents that claimed lives happened because the workers did not pay due attention to safety regulations," he said.

He said the figure was based on the company's records of high- rise constructions over the last five years.

Zainal made the revelation after lecturing at a seminar entitled Safety and Health Problems in Building Construction yesterday.

The one-day seminar was held by the Jakarta Public Works Office in cooperation with PT Astek, the state-run insurance company.

He said had the workers paid proper attention to safety procedures, fatal accidents could have been avoided.

Zainal said many construction workers were "reluctant" to use safety belts and to wear rubber soled shoes when at work.

PT Waskita Karya is currently constructing a 46-floor building, which will be the highest building in the capital, Antara reported.

An Astek official, Sukarna Suriatmadja said 15,075 people construction workers were killed while working on various projects over the last decade.

He said the figure could be higher because the workers were only those covered by life insurance policies. (bas)