A worker has fallen to his death from a building while dismantling bamboo scaffolding in Hong Kong.
The man, 44, was found unconscious on a concrete canopy at the 11-storey Tung Nam Factory Building in To Kwa Wan at about 2pm on Tuesday.
His colleagues called emergency services. Firefighters used a hydraulic platform to get to the man and paramedics rushed him to Kwong Wah Hospital in Yau Ma Tei for emergency treatment, but he was pronounced dead.
A male pedestrian reportedly saw the worker fall from near the top of the scaffolding along with two bamboo poles and an angle bracket and said he heard a loud “bang” as the man landed on the concrete awning.
He said he immediately called police. No safety ropes were seen on the worker during the rescue, he added.
The Hong Kong Construction Industry Employees General Union expressed deep regret over the man’s death, calling it an industrial accident.
The union said safety issues should be considered when designing construction projects and cited the government’s code of practice for bamboo scaffolding.
