Discussion on the outcome of an accident handling

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An accident report and handling results issued by the work safety supervision department: I. Basic information on the accident: At around 6:10 on June 22, 2016, an asphyxiation accident occurred at Section C of the project aimed at renovating and upgrading the special facilities for resettlement related to the Tongnan Aeronautical and Electrical Hub project, which was carried out by Sichuan Bashan Construction Co., Ltd. The accident resulted in 3 deaths and direct economic losses of 3.437 million yuan. II. Issues Revealed by the Accident (1) Construction contractor: Sichuan Bashan Construction Co., Ltd. Sichuan Bashan Construction Co., Ltd. failed to carry out construction in accordance with the \"Special Construction Plan for Manually Dug Piles\", and did not provide ventilation as required nor test the air quality inside the shafts ； Insufficient ventilation equipment at the construction site ； Safety managers failed to provide adequate on-site supervision and did not effectively stop workers from carrying out illegal operations ； Safety emergency rescue drills were not carried out as required, and safety training and technical briefings for the workers were not provided as mandated. (II) Supervision unit: Guangdong Shunshui Engineering Construction Supervision Co., Ltd. The on-site supervisors of Guangdong Shunshui Engineering Construction Supervision Co., Ltd. discovered that the construction unit had failed to provide adequate ventilation and to test the air quality inside the well, and there were also issues such as an insufficient number of ventilation devices at the site. Yet the supervision unit failed to take measures such as stopping the construction, reporting the situation to the project owner, or informing the relevant construction administration authorities. (III) Project owner: Tongnan Longquan Water Resources Construction and Development Co., Ltd. Entrusted by the Construction Command Department of the Tongnan Hydroelectric Hub Project, Tongnan Longquan Water Resources Construction and Development Co., Ltd. is fully responsible for the construction management of this project; it failed to provide adequate supervision over the construction and supervision units, and did not fulfill its duties as the project contractor properly. (IV) The Quality Supervision Station of the Tongnan District Transportation Commission: As the regulatory body in this sector, its supervisors failed to conduct adequate inspections of the project, and they did not properly supervise the illegal activities carried out by the construction and supervision units. III. Recommendations for holding 9 individuals (organizations) accountable: (1) Kou Zhaorui, the on-site safety officer at Sichuan Bashan Construction Co., Ltd., is recommended to be referred to judicial authorities; he is suspected of violating the Criminal Law of the People’s Republic of China, and criminal liability should be pursued against him. (II) Persons and units recommended for disciplinary action under party and administrative regulations: 1. Lu Zhongyuan, a technical staff member and senior engineer at Tongnan Longquan Company, who was responsible for matters related to quality and safety in the section where the accident occurred; he failed to provide adequate supervision and inspection of the construction and supervision units, and is therefore held accountable for the accident. He will be subject to investigation and disciplinary action by the discipline inspection and supervision authorities. 2. Long Xiaowave, General Manager of Tongnan Longquan Company, failed to properly supervise the technical staff responsible for the affected project section, and bears leadership responsibility for the accident; he is under investigation by the discipline inspection and supervision authorities. 3. Zhang Hengxiang, head of the Quality Supervision Section at the Quality Supervision Station of the Tongnan District Transportation Commission, failed to provide adequate supervision over the industry involved in this project and is therefore accountable for the accident; he will be investigated and held responsible by the disciplinary inspection and supervision authorities. 4. Order Tongnan Longquan Company to submit a written apology to Tongnan District **. 5. Order the Quality Supervision Station of the Tongnan District Transportation Commission to submit a written apology to the Tongnan District Transportation Commission. (III) Entities and individuals recommended for financial penalties: 1. Sichuan Bashan Construction Co., Ltd. shall be subject to an administrative penalty in the form of a fine of 550,000 yuan. 2. Wan Zhijun, chairman of Sichuan Bashan Company, was subjected to an administrative penalty in the form of a fine equal to 40% of his annual income for the year 2015. 3. Guangdong Shunshui Engineering Construction Supervision Co., Ltd. was subjected to an administrative penalty in the form of a fine of 510,000 yuan. As a result of the investigation, the on-site safety officer was referred to judicial authorities to face criminal prosecution. Generally, it is understood that the person who bears the greatest responsibility is the main liable party. But why do safety officers bear such great responsibility? Since I have not seen the full accident investigation report, it is difficult to make any assumptions. Perhaps it is the one that benefits the most – the party responsible under the agreement ； Perhaps they failed to carry out their duties at all, or even did not show up to supervise. Of course, as an outsider, it’s just speculation. It seems to go against the principle of accountability that is advocated these days – if safety officers fail in their duties, can managers at all levels then proceed with operations in violation of regulations? ! Can the practice of having safety officers take responsibility in case of incidents address the gaps in safety management? I kindly ask fellow sailors to share their insights; your suggestions will help me improve my understanding.