Iraq
Security personnel and police inspect a Kirkuk sewer where two teenagers died while cleaning it. Photo: Screenshot/Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Two teenagers died while cleaning a sewage drain in Kirkuk on Thursday. Eyewitnesses said they were not wearing any protective gear and appeared to have died from lack of oxygen. A third person was admitted to hospital.
Abdulbari Barzan, 15, and Riyaz Burhan, 14, both died. They were part of a group of teens and young men working to clean the sewer system, eyewitnesses told Rudaw.
"They were six teenage boys. I warned them that they should not go inside without protective gear, but they did not listen to me," said Imad Allawderi, an eyewitness.
Allawderi said he had told one of the deceased that it would be dangerous to descend into the manhole without wearing a mask or any other protective gear. “He told me 'What can be done, this is our job. I work for 20,000 dinars a day.' A few moments later, I saw the supervisor and two of their friends were beating themselves up. I was like what, what happened. I went to the spot, and I noticed they had run out of oxygen."
Bestoon Muayad, another eyewitness, recalled: "Together with my neighbour, we cried out. Two of them were at this sewer, and a third one was over there. Three other people were with them... I went down the manhole, tied their feet with ropes and pulled them up."
Family members and friends rushed to Azadi Hospital where a third worker was receiving medical treatment in the intensive care unit, as he had lost consciousness.
"Two of them were in very critical conditions. One of them lost the heartbeat as soon as they were rushed here. The second one also died shortly later. The third person, who is 20 years old, was in a little bit better condition," Rahel Ahmed, an official at Azadi Hospital, told Rudaw.
Police have launched a probe into the tragic deaths, already interrogating the workers’ supervisor and the other three workers.
Workers in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region often face unsafe conditions. Weak enforcement of labor regulations often leaves workers without protective gear or adequate training. Many employers do not sign contracts with their employees to avoid having to provide health and safety measures. Workers who suffer accidents frequently lose their only source of income.
Under Iraq's Labor Code of 1987, Act No. 71, employers are required to ensure safe workplace conditions and implement sufficient measures to protect workers on the job. The minimum working age in Iraq is 15.
Comments
Rudaw moderates all comments submitted on our website. We welcome comments which are relevant to the article and encourage further discussion about the issues that matter to you. We also welcome constructive criticism about Rudaw.
To be approved for publication, however, your comments must meet our community guidelines.
We will not tolerate the following: profanity, threats, personal attacks, vulgarity, abuse (such as sexism, racism, homophobia or xenophobia), or commercial or personal promotion.
Comments that do not meet our guidelines will be rejected. Comments are not edited – they are either approved or rejected.
Post a comment