Ruth Semilore
Another employee of Quantum Steel Industry, located in the Ogijo area of Sagamu Local Government Area of Ogun State and identified as Pastor, was killed by an industrial machine about a week before one Abayomi was killed in the same factory.
This is just as the factory management has remained silent over the recurring industrial accidents that employees claimed were becoming a regular issue.
Recall that PUNCH Metro reported on Wednesday that barely two months after the state government sealed Quantum Steel Industry following an explosion that left seven employees critically injured, an employee identified as Abayomi lost his life in an industrial accident.
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A casual worker at the factory, who spoke with our correspondent on the condition of anonymity for fear of victimisation, disclosed that the machine operator had instructed Abayomi to remove a scrap that was stuck in it without knowing that the machine was still powered.
The worker added that immediately after Abayomi removed the scrap, the machine began working and rolled him like a scrap.
Our correspondent, who visited the factory on Wednesday, gathered from some of the employees that the incident that led to Pastor’s death occurred during a night shift.
It was also observed that safety protocols like the use of Personal Protective Equipment were disregarded by some of the employees, as the majority of those sighted by our correspondent were without PPE.
Speaking with our correspondent on Wednesday, some of the employees, who pleaded anonymity for fear of being reprimanded by the management, added that an incident had occurred some months ago, leading to the death of about five foreign nationals.
One of the employees narrated that about three weeks ago, Pastor was on a night shift when a machine, which they often referred to as Bucket, hit him on the chest while working on the production line.
He added that the chain connecting the bucket had developed a fault, causing it to collide with Pastor, who was unaware, leading to his eventual death.
The worker said,
“The Pastor’s incident happened before the one that occurred last Monday. He was on a night shift when the chain that was carrying the bucket cut and hit him in the chest. He died immediately.
“After the last Monday incident, some workers and a group of boys protested Abayomi’s death and damaged some parts of the building, so they had to bring in the police and the army to quell the protest.”
Another employee narrated that some foreign employees in the company lost their lives in an industrial accident that occurred some months ago.
“The accident that happened is not only the one of Pastor and Abayomi. Some months back, about five Indians lost their lives in an industrial accident,” the employee said.
Confirming Pastor’s death, a security source in the area told our correspondent that some of his family members had reached out to the company for necessary action.
The security source said,
“Pastor’s death occurred before the one that happened last Monday. Members of the family have contacted the company, and I think some form of compensation was paid.”
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Meanwhile, the Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, Omolola Odutola, did not respond to an enquiry on the incident sent to her WhatsApp as of the time of filing this report.
When our correspondent requested an audience with Quantum Steel management representative, an elderly man who identified himself as the Chief Security Officer told our correspondent that none of the management team members was available to attend to him.
He stressed that all the management staff members who could attend to our correspondent had gone on one assignment or the other.
The CSO said,
“I have tried to contact them (the management), and the person I thought would be able to attend to you has gone out. They have all gone to attend to one assignment or the other. You can come around some other time.”
A management staff member of the company, identified as APM, whose contact was shared with our correspondent, said he was unaware of the incidents when contacted on the telephone.
“I am not aware of the incident. I am currently on annual leave as I speak with you,” APM said.
When contacted, the Special Adviser to the Ogun State Governor on Environmental Protection Agency, Farook Akintunde, who led the delegation that sealed the company in March due to an explosion that left seven persons injured, said he was on a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia and was not aware of the incident.
“I am on Hajj pilgrimage as we speak, so I am not aware of the incident,” Akintunde said.
