Palace wants probe into fatal Keppel shipyard accident

Relatives of crushed workers at the Subic shipyard are grief stricken on learning the accident that killed their loved ones. ROBERT GONZAGA/INQUIRER

MANILA, Philippines—Malacañang wants an investigation to determine if safety standards were violated in the Keppel shipyard accident in Subic that killed five workers.

“There are existing safety standards. So we are going to determine through the Department of Labor and Employment what really happened in Subic and if any safety standards were violated,” presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said over the state-run radio station dzRB.

Police said the workers were repairing the MV Tombarra, a 22,650-ton container ship that can carry 6,350 cars, when a steel platform at the Subic Shipyard and Engineering Inc. collapsed Friday. The yard is managed by Singapore’s Keppel Shipyard Limited.

Subic Mayor Jeffrey Khonghun demanded compensation for the workers from the company, which did not immediately comment.

The shipyard is part of a special economic zone adjacent to the former US Subic Naval Base, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) west of Manila. With Agence France-Presse