Driver in fatal lorry crash arrested
The following article was published in the Straits Times on 24 June 2010.
Driver in fatal lorry crash arrested
Lorry was carrying 15 workers in back even though only 13 allowed
By Ted Chen & Bryan Toh
Straits Times, Jun 24, 2010
Reproduced photo caption: The driver, who is believed to be in his early 20s, is currently out on $10,000 bail. -- ST FILE PHOTO
THE driver who lost control of his lorry, resulting in an accident that left three foreign workers dead on Tuesday morning, has been arrested.
Believed to be in his early 20s, the man, whose identity was not released by the police, is currently out on $10,000 bail. He is understood to be a Chinese national employed by CREC Construction.
Police also confirmed yesterday that there were 15 people riding in the back of the lorry at the time. It was authorised to carry only 13 riders in its cargo bay.
All 15 workers in the back were thrown out of the vehicle when it mounted a metal divider before coming to rest on its side on the PIE slip road towards Thomson Road.
The three who died, Mr Li Jia Jun, 40, Mr Li Xian Long, 45, and Mr Qiu Min Jun, 46, were all sitting at the back of the lorry, which did not have a canopy and had yet to be retrofitted to comply with Land Transport Authority regulations, which come into effect only in 2012.
Fourteen others, including the driver, were sent to Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) for treatment.
All but one have been discharged.
The worker still in hospital is in a stable condition. He declined interviews, and said he wanted to 'recuperate and rest', according to a TTSH spokesman.
The workers were all employed by CREC, about which little is known.
When The Straits Times visited a Teck Whye Lane address listed on its website, the premises were empty.
An adjacent tenant said that CREC had moved out in May, after operating at the premises for about a year.
Checks with the Accounting And Corporate Regulatory Authority (Acra) confirmed that its official address was Teck Whye Lane, but no updates had been made.
Queries made through CREC's listed telephone number were directed to a Mr Zhao Xue Bin, 41, who is understood to be a director of the company.
Mr Zhao, however, refused to reveal the company's physical address, despite repeated requests.
Earlier yesterday, Mr Zhao and about 10 others arrived at the mortuary to identity the bodies.
A friend of Mr Li Xian Long, one of the dead workers, said in Mandarin that Mr Li had been working for CREC for the past 10 months.
The worker, who wanted to remain anonymous, said he knew Mr Li as both were from Hebei province. He added that Mr Li had worked in Singapore on four different occasions since 2007, and said: 'He worked hard and made sacrifices to send money to his family.'
Mr Li is survived by his wife and two sons in their 20s, one of whom is an undergraduate in China. The other is a farmer.
It is understood that the families of the deceased were informed of the accident on Tuesday and are on their way here to collect the bodies.
Driver in fatal lorry crash arrested
Lorry was carrying 15 workers in back even though only 13 allowed
By Ted Chen & Bryan Toh
Straits Times, Jun 24, 2010
Reproduced photo caption: The driver, who is believed to be in his early 20s, is currently out on $10,000 bail. -- ST FILE PHOTOTHE driver who lost control of his lorry, resulting in an accident that left three foreign workers dead on Tuesday morning, has been arrested.
Believed to be in his early 20s, the man, whose identity was not released by the police, is currently out on $10,000 bail. He is understood to be a Chinese national employed by CREC Construction.
Police also confirmed yesterday that there were 15 people riding in the back of the lorry at the time. It was authorised to carry only 13 riders in its cargo bay.
All 15 workers in the back were thrown out of the vehicle when it mounted a metal divider before coming to rest on its side on the PIE slip road towards Thomson Road.
The three who died, Mr Li Jia Jun, 40, Mr Li Xian Long, 45, and Mr Qiu Min Jun, 46, were all sitting at the back of the lorry, which did not have a canopy and had yet to be retrofitted to comply with Land Transport Authority regulations, which come into effect only in 2012.
Fourteen others, including the driver, were sent to Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) for treatment.
All but one have been discharged.
The worker still in hospital is in a stable condition. He declined interviews, and said he wanted to 'recuperate and rest', according to a TTSH spokesman.
The workers were all employed by CREC, about which little is known.
When The Straits Times visited a Teck Whye Lane address listed on its website, the premises were empty.
An adjacent tenant said that CREC had moved out in May, after operating at the premises for about a year.
Checks with the Accounting And Corporate Regulatory Authority (Acra) confirmed that its official address was Teck Whye Lane, but no updates had been made.
Queries made through CREC's listed telephone number were directed to a Mr Zhao Xue Bin, 41, who is understood to be a director of the company.
Mr Zhao, however, refused to reveal the company's physical address, despite repeated requests.
Earlier yesterday, Mr Zhao and about 10 others arrived at the mortuary to identity the bodies.
A friend of Mr Li Xian Long, one of the dead workers, said in Mandarin that Mr Li had been working for CREC for the past 10 months.
The worker, who wanted to remain anonymous, said he knew Mr Li as both were from Hebei province. He added that Mr Li had worked in Singapore on four different occasions since 2007, and said: 'He worked hard and made sacrifices to send money to his family.'
Mr Li is survived by his wife and two sons in their 20s, one of whom is an undergraduate in China. The other is a farmer.
It is understood that the families of the deceased were informed of the accident on Tuesday and are on their way here to collect the bodies.
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