Three company employees face charges of workplace negligence and injury
A woman in her 30s, initially in a coma, now has normal vital signs
Attention has again been drawn to a shocking incident at a mid-sized company in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province. The news has spread that the police have decided to refer three company officials to the prosecution.
On the afternoon of June 28th, while inspecting materials related to optical lenses in the inspection room of the company, a woman in her 30s, Ms. A, unknowingly drank a transparent liquid in a paper cup on her desk, thinking it was water. However, the liquid was not water but a toxic solution containing hydrofluoric acid, a lens-coating stripper. Lens coating strippers are typically used to remove lens coatings.
According to a police investigation, her coworker, Mr. B, had left the paper cup containing the lens coating stripper on the desk for inspection. Ms. A drank it and was transported to the hospital.
No evidence has been found that Mr. B intended to harm Ms. A. The police determined the intentionality and negligence based on eyewitness accounts and surveillance camera footage.
On the day of the incident, Ms. A was transferred to two university hospitals in Uijeongbu. Still, after being told that ‘treatment is difficult,’ she was moved to another hospital for treatment. Ms. A, who was taken to the hospital in a cardiac arrest state, has now returned to normal heartbeat and breathing but has been reported to be in a coma for four months. To remove the toxic solution from her body, Ms. A has been attached to an artificial heart-lung machine (ECMO) and received dialysis treatment.
About this incident, the Dongducheon Police Station plans to refer Mr. B, along with the factory manager Mr. C, who is in charge of the scene, and safety manager Mr. D, a total of three people, to the prosecution on charges of occupational negligence resulting in injury on the 16th. The company, responsible for neglecting hazardous materials management, has decided to apply charges of violating the Chemicals Control Act.
The police explained that although no intentionality was found in Mr. B and others related to the incident, they would be referred to the prosecution for their management neglect.
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