A 41-year-old worker lost his life on Monday afternoon when he was hit in the head by the shovel of an excavator while digging a drainage well. Ambulances and a rescue helicopter were immediately sent to the scene, but the man’s life could not be saved.
Investigating the circumstances
The circumstances surrounding the accident are being investigated by the German authorities and the involved contractors. After the accident, all workers at the construction site were offered psychological crisis counseling.
“Our thoughts are with the deceased’s family during this difficult time. The safety of our workers is the highest priority during the construction of the Fehmarn Belt tunnel. We will now await the results of the authorities’ investigation and any recommendations they may have,” says Henrik Vincentsen, CEO of Femern A/S, in a written statement to FemernReport.
Second serious accident in three weeks
Monday’s accident is the second serious work accident on the Fehmarn project in just three weeks. On Thursday, April 11, a worker was run over by an excavator at the tunnel construction site in Rødbyhavn. That accident led to the man having to have one of his legs amputated.
Model project
The Fehmarn tunnel has otherwise stood as a model project for work safety in large construction and infrastructure projects. For example, the FBC consortium noted that over five million hours had been worked with only one serious accident during the excavation of the tunnel trench and land reclamation on Lolland.
Five fatal accidents in 2023
According to figures from the Danish Working Environment Authority, there were a total of five reported fatal work accidents in the construction and infrastructure industry in Denmark in 2023. In the same year, 130 work accidents were reported in the industry that resulted in at least six months of sick leave. Overall, 6,350 work accidents were reported in the construction and infrastructure industry that led to a sick leave.
Taking safety seriously
Monday’s work accident took place at the tunnel construction site in Puttgarden and is thus a matter for the FLC consortium. Here too, they have been almost entirely free from serious work accidents until April 11, 2024.
– They take safety seriously, and they have had a good handle on it, says Bjarne Jensen, chairman of the construction group in 3F on Lolland.
Entering a dangerous phase
According to Søren Sand Kirk, director of the BAT Cartel, a trade union for employees in the construction and infrastructure industry in Denmark, the Fehmarn project is now entering a more dangerous phase:
– Up until now, it has mostly been factory work and infrastructure work, moving earth. Soon the work on the tunnel itself is beginning, going underground and working in tight spaces. And that is a more dangerous phase, says Søren Sand Kirk.
Monday’s accident in Puttgarden is the third serious accident involving an excavator in just three weeks on Lolland-Falster and Fehmarn.
