Key safety lapses led to fatal SMRT accident: panel
The body of SMRT employee Nasrulhudin Najumudin being brought home on 23 March. Photo: Safhras Khan/Yahoo Singapore
A failure to follow key safety procedures led to the deaths of SMRT employees Nasrulhudin Najumudin, 26, and Muhammad Asyraf Ahmad Buhari, 24, last month.
This was the conclusion of an independent panel appointed to review the accident, as it wrapped up its investigation. The panel comprised members of the SMRT Board Risk Committee and three independent experts.
In a statement Monday (25 April), SMRT said that on the day of the accident (22 March), a 15-member joint engineering team had been assigned to examine a signaling monitoring conditioning device along the tracks near Pasir Ris MRT station. The team included trainees Nasrulhudin and Asyraf.
“Before a work team is allowed onto the track, protection measures must be applied. This includes code setting the speed limit on the affected track sector to 0 km/h so that no train can enter on automated mode, and deploying watchmen to look out for approaching trains and provide early warning to the work team,” SMRT noted.
However, the panel determined that this “vital safety protection measure” was not applied, directly causing the accident. Other factors that played a part in the accident were track access management controls, communication protocols and track vigilance by various parties.
The panel concluded that, while existing safety protection mechanisms are adequate, these can be improved for greater clarity and ease of ground implementation.
“SMRT deeply regrets that the failure to apply a vital safety procedure led to the tragic accident. SMRT Trains has taken immediate steps to ensure stricter enforcement of procedures, strengthened system ownership and control across levels and work teams, and tightened supervision within teams to prevent a recurrence,” the transport operator said.
SMRT’s investigation report has been submitted to the Ministry of Manpower, Singapore Police Force and Land Transport Authority to assist with their statutory investigations.
