South Korea: 4 dead in bridge collapse
Officials said that two of the deceased were Chinese nationals, and two were South Korean. One of the wounded workers is also Chinese.
The bridge in Anseong, about 65 kilometres (40 miles) south of the capital Seoul, was still being built when the 50-meter-long beams holding it up crashed to the ground.
Local fire official Ko Kyung-man told a televised press conference that the builders "were working to install a deck on the bridge."
"All of the 10 were up on the deck... and fell from both sides when it collapsed," he said.
Authorities said that the cause of the incident could not immediately be determined.
Hyundai Engineering, the lead contractor for the construction project, issued a statement saying: "We sincerely bow our heads in apology to those who lost their precious lives and were injured in the accident at our construction site. We are actively cooperating with the relevant authorities to ensure a prompt resolution on-site."
Acting President Choi Sang-mok told relevant agencies to mobilise all available personnel and equipment to the site of the collapse.
Later, the National Fire Agency said it had sent 150 emergency workers to the scene, while the Transport Ministry said it had also dispatched several officials.
According to South Korea's Labour Ministry, between the years 2020 and 2023, at least 8,000 people died in work-related incidents. Legislation was enacted in 2022 to try and address widespread safety issues, but fatalities have persisted.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Observer
21 hours ago
- Observer
Guns fall silent on Thai, Cambodia border for truce
BANGKOK: A ceasefire between Thailand and Cambodia held on Tuesday and military commanders from both sides met to discuss measures to maintain the truce, as some residents along the disputed frontier trickled back home after five days of intense fighting. Thai and Cambodian leaders met in Malaysia on Monday and agreed to a ceasefire to halt their deadliest conflict in more than a decade, which has killed at least 43 people, many of them civilians, and displaced over 300,000 in both countries. Border areas remained calm, Thailand's acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai told reporters in Bangkok, although he accused Cambodian troops of violating the ceasefire early on Tuesday. Cambodia denied this, insisting its troops had strictly abided by the ceasefire since midnight, according to a statement by Defence Minister Tea Seiha. Despite the initial jitters, military commanders from both sides held talks and agreed to maintain the ceasefire, stop any troop movement, and facilitate the return of the wounded and dead, Thai army spokesman Major-General Winthai Suvaree said. Each side will establish a coordinating team of four to resolve any problems, Winthai told reporters. Cambodia's influential former premier Hun Sen, in a Facebook post, thanked "the armies of both Cambodia and Thailand for respecting and implementing this agreement". Further negotiations will continue at a meeting of the General Border Committee, which coordinates on border security, ceasefires, and troop deployments, scheduled for August 4 in Cambodia, the Thai army said. The committee includes the defence ministers and senior military commanders from both countries. In a statement, the Thai army said it had detained 18 Cambodian soldiers who surrendered. A Cambodian defence ministry spokesperson did not immediately respond to questions on the detentions. Both militaries have agreed not to deploy more troops along their disputed border, said Lim Menghour, Director-General of the Commission on Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the National Assembly of Cambodia, who also underlined the need for international observers to monitor the ceasefire. Malaysia's Defence Chief General Mohd Nizam Jaffar led a delegation to Thailand and Cambodia on Tuesday, the Malaysian army said in a statement, while a Chinese military spokesman said Beijing will maintain close communication with both countries to help consolidate the consensus over the ceasefire. Thailand and Cambodia have wrangled for decades over their disputed frontier and have been on a conflict footing since the killing of a Cambodian soldier in a skirmish late in May, which led to a troop buildup on both sides and a full-blown diplomatic crisis. Monday's peace talks came after a sustained push by Malaysian Premier Anwar Ibrahim and US President Donald Trump, with the latter warning Thai and Cambodian leaders that trade negotiations would not progress if fighting continued. Thailand and Cambodia face a tariff of 36% on their goods in the U.S., their biggest export market, unless a reduction can be negotiated. After the ceasefire deal was reached, Trump said he had spoken to both leaders and instructed his trade team to restart tariff talks. Pichai Chunhavajira, Thailand's finance minister, said on Tuesday that trade talks with Washington were expected to be concluded before August 1. Thailand has estimated initial damage from the border conflict at more than 10 billion baht ($300 million), Pichai said. The government is preparing a budget of at least 25 billion baht to mitigate the economic impact, and has rolled out relief measures including soft loans, loan repayment deferrals and tax breaks, he said. Daily activity resumed some parts of Thailand's border areas, including the Kantharalak district, about 30 km (20 miles) from the frontline, where Chaiya Phumjaroen, 51, returned to town to reopen his shop. "I am very happy that a ceasefire happened," he said. "If they continue to fight, we have no opportunity to make money." The ceasefire deal reflected a rare convergence of interest between the U.S. and China, which also pushed for the talks, but the agreement remains fragile, and third-party monitoring is essential to keep it in place, said Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a political scientist at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University. "It cannot be left to Thailand and Cambodia to implement because the hostilities are running so deep now." — Reuters
Observer
2 days ago
- Observer
Russia's Aeroflot cancels flights over massive cyberattack
MOSCOW: Russian national flag carrier Aeroflot was forced to cancel dozens of flights on Monday after a crippling cyberattack claimed by a shadowy pro-Ukrainian hacking group, which one lawmaker called a wake-up call for Moscow. The Kremlin said the situation was worrying and prosecutors confirmed the disruption was the result of a hack and opened a criminal investigation. Senior lawmaker Anton Gorelkin said that Russia was under digital attack. "We must not forget that the war against our country is being waged on all fronts, including the digital one. And I do not rule out that the 'hacktivists' who claimed responsibility for the incident are in the service of unfriendly states," Gorelkin said in a statement. Aeroflot did not say how long the problems would take to resolve, but departure boards at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport turned red as flights were cancelled at a time when many Russians take their holidays. A statement purporting to be from a hacking group called Silent Crow said it had carried out the operation together with a Belarusian group called Cyberpartisans BY, and linked it to the war in Ukraine. "Glory to Ukraine! Long live Belarus!" said the statement, whose authenticity Reuters could not immediately verify. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine. Silent Crow has previously claimed responsibility for attacks this year on a Russian real estate database, a state telecoms company, a large insurance firm, the Moscow government's IT department and the Russian office of South Korean carmaker KIA. Some of those resulted in big data leaks. "The information that we are reading in the public domain is quite alarming. The hacker threat is a threat that remains for all large companies providing services to the population," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. Aeroflot, the transport ministry and the aviation regulator did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the hack. The airline said it had cancelled more than 40 flights — mostly within Russia but also including routes to the Belarusian capital Minsk and the Armenian capital Yerevan — after reporting a failure in its information systems. At least 10 other flights were delayed. "Specialists are currently working to minimise the impact on the flight schedule and to restore normal service operations," it said. The statement in the name of Silent Crow said the cyberattack was the result of a year-long operation which had deeply penetrated Aeroflot's network, destroyed 7,000 servers and gained control over the personal computers of employees, including senior managers. It published screenshots of file directories purportedly from inside Aeroflot's network and threatened to shortly start releasing "the personal data of all Russians who have ever flown Aeroflot". Since Russia launched its war in Ukraine in February 2022, travellers in Russia have become accustomed to flight disruptions. However, those delays have usually been caused by temporary airport closures during drone attacks. Irate passengers vented their anger on social network VK, complaining about a lack of clear information from the airline. Malena Ashi wrote: "I've been sitting at Volgograd airport since 3:30!!!!! The flight has been rescheduled for the third time!!!!!! This time it was rescheduled for approximately 14:50, and it was supposed to depart at 5:00!!!" Another woman, Yulia Pakhota, posted: "The call centre is unavailable, the website is unavailable, the app is unavailable. How can I return a ticket or exchange it for the next flight, as Aeroflot suggests?" Aeroflot said affected passengers could get a refund or rebook as soon as its systems were up and running and that it was trying to get some affected passengers seats on other airlines. Despite Western sanctions on Russia that have drastically limited travel and routes, Aeroflot remains among the top 20 airlines worldwide by passenger numbers, which last year hit 55.3 million people, according to its website. — Reuters
Observer
2 days ago
- Observer
Major developments in Trump's trade war
U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff decisions since he took office on January 20 have shocked financial markets and sent a wave of uncertainty through the global economy. Here is a timeline of the major developments: February 1 - Trump imposes 25% tariffs on Mexican and most Canadian imports and 10% on goods from China, demanding they curb the flow of fentanyl and illegal immigrants into the U.S. February 3 - Trump agrees to a 30-day pause in his tariff threat on Mexico and Canada in return for concessions on border and crime enforcement. The U.S. has not reached such a deal with China. February 10 - Trump raises tariffs on steel and aluminum to a flat 25% "without exceptions or exemptions". March 3 - Trump says 25% tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada will take effect from March 4 and doubles fentanyl-related tariffs on all Chinese imports to 20%. March 6 - Trump exempts goods from Canada and Mexico under a North American trade pact for a month. March 26 - Trump unveils a 25% tariff on imported cars and light trucks. April 2 - Trump announces global tariffs with a baseline of 10% across all imports and significantly higher duties on some of the United States' biggest trading partners. April 9 - Trump pauses for 90 days most of his country-specific tariffs that kicked in less than 24 hours earlier after an upheaval in financial markets erased trillions of dollars from bourses around the world. The 10% blanket duty on almost all U.S. imports stays in place. Trump says he will raise the tariff on Chinese imports to 125% from the 104% level that took effect a day earlier. This pushes the extra duties on Chinese goods to 145%, including the previously imposed tariffs. May 9 - Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announce a limited bilateral trade agreement that leaves in place 10% tariffs on British exports and lowers U.S. duties on British car exports. May 12 - The U.S. and China agree to temporarily slash reciprocal tariffs. Under the 90-day truce, the U.S. will cut the extra tariffs it imposed on Chinese imports to 30% from 145%, while China's duties on U.S. imports will be slashed to 10% from 125%. May 13 - The U.S. cuts the low-value "de minimis" tariff on China shipments, reducing duties for items valued at up to $800 to 54% from 120%. May 23 - Trump says he is recommending a straight 50% tariff on goods from the European Union starting on June 1. He backpedals on this threat two days later. He also warns Apple that it would face a 25% tariff if phones it sold in the U.S. were manufactured outside of the country. May 29 - A federal appeals court temporarily reinstates the most sweeping of Trump's tariffs, pausing an earlier lower court's ruling to consider the government's appeal. June 3 - Trump signs an executive proclamation activating a hike in the steel and aluminum tariffs to 50% from 25%. June 12 - Trump warns he may soon hike auto tariffs. July 3 - Trump says the U.S. will place a 20% tariff on many Vietnamese exports, with trans-shipments from third countries through Vietnam facing a 40% levy. July 6 - Trump says on Truth Social that countries aligning themselves with the "Anti-American policies" of BRICS will be charged an additional 10% tariff. July 7 - Trump says on Truth Social that the additional higher duties announced in earlier months will kick in with a delay on August 1. In letters sent to 14 countries, including Japan, South Korea, and Serbia, he says that it will include tariffs between 25% and 40%. July 10 - Trump says the U.S. will impose a 35% tariff on imports from Canada in August and plans to impose blanket tariffs of 15% or 20% on most other trading partners. July 12 - Trump threatens to impose a 30% tariff on imports from Mexico and the EU from August 1. July 15 - Trump says the U.S. will impose a 19% tariff on goods from Indonesia under a new agreement. July 22 - Trump strikes a trade deal with Japan that lowers tariffs on auto imports to 15% and spares Tokyo from punishing new levies on other goods. July 27 - The U.S. reaches a trade agreement with the European Union, imposing a 15% import tariff on most EU goods.
