Disappearance of Worker Presumed Dead from Toxic Gas Suffocation during Manhole Work in Incheon

A worker who went missing during the investigation of sewage pipelines in a manhole on a road in Byeongbang-dong, Gyeyang-gu, Incheon, has been found dead.

On the 7th, Incheon Fire Department announced that the 52-year-old Mr. A, who had gone missing the day before, was discovered at the Gulpo Sewage Treatment Plant, connected to the sewage system.

On the morning of the 6th, at 9:22 AM, the fire department received a report stating that "two people are collapsed inside a road manhole" in Byeongbang-dong, Gyeyang-gu, Incheon.

Twenty minutes after the report was received, the fire department rescued the 48-year-old Mr. B, the representative of the sewage management company, from within the manhole in a state of cardiac arrest.

Mr. B was transported to the hospital while receiving emergency treatment, including cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). However, Mr. A, the 52-year-old who was investigating the sewage pipeline alongside Mr. B, went missing, prompting police and fire authorities to conduct underwater search operations.

At that time, it was determined that Mr. B encountered an accident while attempting to rescue Mr. A, who had collapsed and could not get out of the manhole.

Based on the detection of hydrogen sulfide and carbon monoxide in the underground pipelines, police and fire officials speculate that Mr. A and Mr. B were poisoned by toxic gas and plan to investigate the specific circumstances surrounding the incident.

Additionally, the police plan to request an autopsy from the National Forensic Service to ascertain the precise cause of death for the deceased Mr. A.

Image source: Firefighters are searching for the missing person in a road manhole in Byeongbang-dong, Gyeyang-gu, Incheon on the 6th. / News1 (Incheon Fire Department)