Western Steel react to accidents at premises

Accra, April 5, GNA - The Management and Staff of Western Steel and Forgings Limited (WSFL), has expressed their grief and sorrow to employees who were injured in an industrial accident. A press statement issued by Nana Ofosua, Corporate Affairs Director in Accra on Thursday said the Company is also committed to ensure that the affected persons receive the best possible medical treatment and compensation.

"WSFL is stunned by the reports placed in the media; particularly pictures placed on the internet purported to be the scene of the accident. We wish to state categorically that those pictures were not from the scene of the accident and that there was no explosion of that nature at the factory."

"The factory doors are opened to all interested persons to verify what had happened and to also understand the company's Safety, Health and Environmental standards, guidelines and procedures, the statement said.

WSFL has been hit by three incidents whilst the workers were busily discharging their duties. The first incident occurred on Thursday, April 21 at the Steel Melting Shop (SMS) at about 07:40 hours during the daily SMS work routine. There was a sudden boiling and splattering of molten metal that injured 13 workers.

The affected employees had burns on their bodies; one fell in an attempt to escape and sustained injuries on the knee. The injured were sent to Narh - Bita Hospital for the necessary medical treatment. Eight of them were treated and discharged while the remaining five are still on admission.

The statement said: 93Our investigation suggests that the boiling and splattering of the molten metal was due to the charging of foreign material within the scrap used in the furnace."

The Second Incident occurred on Friday, April 22 at the Oxygen plant. At about 1247 hours two employees were filling oxygen cylinders when one of the cylinders burst, injuring the two employees. They were sent to Tema General Hospital for treatment and later referred to Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital for further medical attention. Investigations are still on going to confirm the exact cause of this incident.

The third incident occurred on Saturday, April 30 at 2015 hours. The injured, Martin Gyekye was poking the first charge mix when there was a sudden splash of hot air from a partly sealed object. There were three other employees present who were not harmed. 5 April 11