2 crushed to death by falling container, 3rd worker killed in fall at separate site
Victims identified as Hassan Watted, Diab Watted and Bilal Jabarin; police detain five at first construction site on suspicion of negligent manslaughter
Two people were killed and several others were injured in a construction accident in Tirat Carmel in northern Israel on Sunday morning, police said. Hours later, a third person was killed in a separate construction accident at another northern Israel building site.
In the first incident, a shipping container that got disconnected from a crane at a construction site on Palmach Street fell to the ground and crushed two workers at the site. Both workers were in their 30s.
According to paramedics, one worker in serious condition was rescued from inside the collapsed container. Two additional injured workers were listed in serious and light condition.
An investigation was opened and five people were detained on suspicion of negligent manslaughter and violating other safety codes, the Israel Police said in a statement.
According to reports in Hebrew-language media, the container was used as an elevator at the site and was controlled by a crane.
A representative of Israel’s Directorate General of Labor within the Economy and Industry Ministry was dispatched to the scene, police said.
טירת הכרמל,קריסת מעלית משא על מבנה מגורים (מכולה),2 הרוגים במקום, 3 פצועים במצב בינוני ו 1 קל.???? pic.twitter.com/5eCJ3VcPwb
— Real News IL (@RealNewsIL) August 21, 2022
The two workers who lost their lives in the incident were later identified in Hebrew language media as cousins Hassan Watted and Diab Watted.
Hassan had become a father last year, the Ynet news site reported.
טירת הכרמל,תאונה באתר בנייה כתוצאה ממעלית משא שקרסה על מכולה/קרוואן בו שהו עובדים,2 הרוגים ו 6 פצועים בדרגות שונות.???? pic.twitter.com/yck4lRHrPf
— Real News IL (@RealNewsIL) August 21, 2022
Hours after the accident, a worker was killed when he fell into an 8-meter (26-foot) deep pit in the town of Gadish.
Rescuers called to the scene took nearly two hours to extract Bilal Jabarin, 56, who was unresponsive and trapped beneath a pipe.
He was declared dead at the scene. It was not immediately clear what caused him to fall, and police opened an investigation.
Deaths of construction workers in Israel are a frequent occurrence, often attributed to poorly enforced safety codes.
The deadly incident joins a series of construction-related fatalities since the beginning of the year.
Since the beginning of 2022, 44 people had died in construction sites in Israel and dozens of others were injured, according to the Safe Work in Israel lobby group.
The group said there has been a 50% increase in construction worker deaths in the first months of 2022 compared to the same period in 2021.
