WORK PLACE HEALTH AND SAFETY, FOURTH EXPLOSION AT WESTERN STEEL, DAILY GRAPHIC, WED MAY 4, 2011 (FRONT LEAD)

Story: Della Russel Ocloo, Tema

Another explosion, the fourth since February 2011, has rocked Western Steel and Forgings Limited in the Kpone Industrial Area in Tema, injuring another employee of the company.
The victim, Mr Martin Gyekye, 43, sustained severe injuries to his face and some parts of his body at the melting plant where the latest explosion occurred.
He is currently on admission at the Narh-Bita Hospital.
The latest incident occurred about 2 p.m. Saturday, following similar explosions at the factory on February 1, Thursday, April 21 and Good Friday, April 22, 2011 which injured 13 employees, one of whom died later at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital.
Unconfirmed reports suggested that the material put into the furnace for melting was not properly screened to ensure the absence of any explosive material which might have caused the latest explosion.
Company officials have, meanwhile, mounted surveillance on Mr Gyakyi to prevent the media from having access to him.
When the Daily Graphic visited the Narh-Bita Hospital where he and other victims are on admission, the company officials who were at the hospital at the time of the visit denied the paper access to the victims’ wards.
A technical team from the Factories Inspectorate Division of the Ministry of Employment and Social Welfare, led by the acting Chief Factory Inspector, Mr Adjei Boye, yesterday visited the premises of Western Steel, after the division had come under fire from the Ghana Federation of Labour (GFL) for its failure to ensure safety measures.
The GFL also petitioned the Ministry of Employment to close down the factory with immediate effect to compel its management to put in proper safety measures.
The General Secretary of the federation, Mr Abraham Koomson, who has been following up on the victims at the hospital, expressed disgust at the failure of the authorities of Western Steel to report the incident to the labour union.
He was not happy at the unco-operative attitude of officials of the company who had failed to make comments on the incident.
Mr Adjei Boye told the Daily Graphic that the team was compiling its report for submission to the Ministry of Employment and Social Welfare and would, therefore, not want to prejudice the decision of the ministry.
The Minister for Employment and Social Welfare, Mr Enoch Teye Mensah, said a decision on whether or not to close the factory would be informed by the recommendations of the technical team.
Mr Mensah is expected to visit the factory today to assess the situation.
Meanwhile, the management of the company has embarked on a massive clean up of its premises in anticipation of the minister’s visit.