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Nishimatsu fined $121,400 for 2004 highway collapse in Singapore+(Japan Economic Newswire Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)SINGAPORE, Jan. 5_(Kyodo) _ Japan's Nishimatsu Construction Co. has been fined S$200,000 (about $121,400) for the collapse of a Singapore highway nearby a subway tunnel under construction that killed four workers, a court official said Thursday. Nishimatsu, the main contractor hired by the Singapore government for the construction of the subway tunnel near the Nicoll Highway in central Singapore, admitted that its design errors led to the weakness of an underground wall and subsequent collapse of the tunnel. It pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to ensure that the worksite was of sound construction and properly maintained. Scores of workers were in the tunnel when it caved in during construction on April 20, 2004, causing the nearby highway to crumble. A committee appointed by the government to investigate the incident placed the blame largely on the negligence of Nishimatsu and its engineers, and recommended legal action. Singapore District Court Judge Liew Thiam Leng, who passed the sentence during a brief hearing Wednesday, said he decided to impose the maximum penalty as deterrence to other companies involved in similar projects. A Nishimatsu official in Singapore, Philip Khoo, told Kyodo News that Nishimatsu would not appeal the sentence and will pay the fine. Nishimatsu's lawyer, Philip Jeyaretnam, urged the court not to impose the full fine, saying the government's engineers had also given the impression that the excavation operation was safe. Jeyaretnam said Nishimatsu spent S$11 million on rescue operations, reconstruction of the highway and conducting impact checks on buildings in the vicinity after the accident. Three Nishimatsu executives involved in the project -- design manager Kazuo Shimada, 50, project coordinator Paul Broome, 49, and project director Shun Sugawara, 55 -- are facing the prospect of legal action, which could lead to fines and imprisonment. Khoo said Nishimatsu is continuing with the project after the accident. It is also involved in another subway project and the construction of a condominium. |