Bangladeshi worker dies after forklift incident in Singapore

A migrant worker from Bangladesh working at a salvage yard in Sungei Kadut of Singapore was struck in the neck by a forklift and later died of his wounds.

The Straits Times understands the forklift driver at Beng Cheng Metal did not call for an ambulance after the incident on 16 April, which happened at around 10:00am.

He used his own car to rush Biswas Sanjay Kumar, 37, to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, where the worker succumbed to his injuries on 22 April, said Mr Alvin Lim, one of the directors of the company.

“He (Biswas) had been with the company for only one month, so it’s very unfortunate. It was an accident, and we are still in shock,” he added.

Mr Lim said that on the day of the accident, Mr Biswas, who was hired as a driver, was shouting out instructions to the forklift driver operating the machine.

The forklift driver only suspected something was amiss when Biswas went quiet. He then found the Bangladeshi lying on the ground.

Mr Lim said, “The (forklift driver) had a car and when he saw what happened, he panicked. He thought the best and fastest way was to take him (Mr Biswas) to hospital himself.”

A spokesman for the police, who are investigating the incident, said they received a call for assistance from the hospital at 10:40am on 16 April, around 40 minutes after the accident.

In response to queries from ST, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said Mr Biswas was guiding a forklift operator, who wanted to lift a bag of scrap metal, when one of the forks struck him on his neck.

The ministry said that as a general safety measure, forklift operators must check and ensure that nobody is within close proximity of the machine when it is in use.

MOM added that it has instructed Beng Cheng Metal to stop all work activities on the premises.

Mr Biswas left his wife, their 18-month-old daughter and his mother.

He came to Singapore 10 years ago, hoping to earn enough money to build a house for his family in Joydihi village, said his cousin, Mr Ojha Tapas, 36.

Source: The Straits Times