Channel NewsAsia 8 Jun 08;
SINGAPORE : Fifteen workers were injured when a vessel caught fire shortly before noon on Sunday.
The incident occurred at Kreuz Shipyard, located at Tuas Crescent. One of the victims suffered 90 percent burns and is in critical condition.
The flash fire had unexpectedly broken out on the bridge of the supply vessel "Rainbow Star".
Firefighters were called in and they brought the flames under control within 20 minutes.
The bridge suffered the brunt of the fire, but the crew living quarters, located one level below, was also damaged.
Most of the victims, made up of crew members and shipyard workers, are in their 20s and 30s.
Channel NewsAsia understands they come from Bangladesh, India and Indonesia.
Six suffered severe burns and were sent to Singapore General Hospital.
Four of them are in the Intensive Care Unit, including one who is in critical condition, with 90 percent burns to his body.
However, the other two are in stable condition in the high-dependency ward.
The remaining nine workers were treated for smoke inhalation at the Alexandra and National University Hospitals.
Among them, six workers were treated for smoke inhalation at Alexandra Hospital, and have been discharged.
Channel NewsAsia understands that the vessel, registered in Belize, has been undergoing maintenance at Kreuz Shipyard since March. And painting work was being carried out at the time of the incident.
The cause of the fire is being investigated. - CNA/ms
Repairs on vessel almost done, then blast occurs
Six of the 15 casualties are seriously injured
Teh Joo Lin, Straits Times 9 Jun 08;
JUST before the lunch hour yesterday, the chief engineer of the 50m-long supply boat Rainbow Star was on board the ship, which was being repaired in a Tuas dock.
The next instant, a massive explosion rocked the vessel, blowing out the glass from its windows.
Mr Ustin Massappa, a 35-year-old Indonesian national, became a human pin cushion, as glass shards flew out and pierced his back.
What is believed to have been a flash fire broke out on the Belize-registered vessel, which was in the final stages of repair after having been berthed at Kreuz Shipbuilding & Engineering in Tuas Crescent for almost three months.
Mr Ustin, reckoning there were about 20 shipyard workers and the boat's crew on board, gathered his wits about him and immediately ordered the electricity supply to the ship to be turned off.
As the fire raged, those who were well enough quickly went around to look for those who were more seriously hurt.
A shipyard worker who was working near the wharf said that following the explosion, he saw plumes of white and orange smoke billowing from the ship.
The Chinese national, who declined to be named, said: 'I heard a very loud 'pong' sound. The whole boat was covered in smoke...It was very pungent and it stung, and those on board started shouting 'Run! Run!''.
The 15 casualties were helped off the vessel. The Chinese national said some could walk, but others had to be carried.
'A few of them had their skin burnt off...their faces, bodies and heads. They had no more overalls on them,' he added.
All 15, either shipyard workers or crewmen, are foreigners.
Six are in the Singapore General Hospital (SGH). The other nine, who suffered cuts and smoke inhalation, were taken to the National University Hospital and Alexandra Hospital.
An SGH spokesman said that four of the six there were in intensive care, including a man in his 30s who suffered 90-per-cent burns on his body.
The Ministry of Manpower last night issued a stop-work order on all painting jobs at Kreuz.
It is not clear where the fire started, though the Singapore Civil Defence Force noted that the flames were confined to the vessel's 20m-by-5m bridge.
The Workplace Safety and Health Council and the Manpower Ministry have made it a priority to reduce the number of accidents due to fires, explosions and exposure to harmful substances.
Nine workers died in these kinds of accidents last year, compared to just one in 2006. The sectors at risk of them include the chemical and shipbuilding and repair industries.
A senior employee of Kreuz who declined to be named, would only say that the injured shipyard workers would be well taken care of.
Mr Juffri Abdullah, the administration and business development manager of Orchid Star, which owns the Rainbow Star, said the supply boat had been scheduled to set sail for Batam this week.
'The engine was tested last week. The work's all done - then this happened, so we are all shocked,' he said.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY MELISSA SIM
Deadly turn in Tuas ship blast: Burn victim dies in hospital
Cause of explosion still unknown; blaze was second in two months at Kreuz shipyard
Amelia Tan & Jermyn Chow, Straits Times 10 Jun 08;
AN INDIAN national who was severely burned in a shipyard explosion over the weekend died early yesterday morning in hospital.
Mr Karuppan Arjunan, a 42-year-old father of three, succumbed at 6am, less than 24 hours after suffering burns to 90 per cent of his body.
The Tamil Nadu native, who had been working in Singapore for over three years, was considering quitting work and returning to India in the days before the blast, said a relative yesterday.
Mr Karuppan was one of 15 shipyard workers and crewmen who were injured during an explosion on board the supply boat Rainbow Star, which was being repaired at a Tuas dock.
Five workers are still warded at Singapore General Hospital. Three are in the Intensive Care Unit, while two are in stable condition. Nine others, treated for cuts and smoke inhalation, have been discharged.
The cause of the blast, which happened around noon on Sunday, is still unknown.
At the time of fire, the workers were painting a tank that holds the Rainbow Star's fresh water, said Mr Juffri Abdullah, the administration and business development manager of Orchid Star, which owns the 50m-long supply boat.
Safety expert Andrew H. S. Tan, who spoke to the The Straits Times, said that paint fumes can explode if they come in contact with fire. The vice-president of the Singapore Institution of Safety Officers added that painting work should always be done in a well-ventilated area.
Kreuz Shipbuilding and Engineering, which owns the shipyard where Mr Karuppan was employed, put up a statement on its website yesterday declining to comment on the cause of the fire.
Sunday's blaze was the second accident in two months at the Kreuz shipyard.
A Manpower Ministry spokesman told The Straits Times that a flash fire broke out in early April on a barge that was under construction. Seven people were injured. Investigations for that case are ongoing.
Meanwhile, a group of Mr Karuppan's friends gathered at SGH yesterday afternoon. Most of them were in a daze. Some buried their faces in their hands.
Mr Karuppan's cousin Rajakumar said: 'He told me two weeks ago, that he wanted to go back to India. He said work is too tiring here.'
He added that his relative had come to Singapore over three years ago seeking a better life for his wife and three young sons, who are aged between three and six years old.
'He was a very good man. He never drank and always saved money so that he could send more money home every month,' he said.
Mr Karuppan's family hopes to send his body back to India soon.
'He was from a poor family and his wife is a housewife. I don't know how they are going to cope now that he is gone,' said Mr Rajakumar.
