Construction worker dies of asphyxiation, two rescued

A 45-year-old construction worker was asphyxiated to death inside a sump of an under-construction building, while two others were rescued by the Fire and Emergency Services in Peenya on Monday.

The deceased, Venugopal Reddy, is a native of Nellore in Andhra Pradesh, and was working with Srinivas and Swamy at the building near Shivamma hotel in Nelagadhiranahalli, the police said.

According to the police, the incident happened around 5 pm when the workers went down into the newly constructed sump to remove centring sheets, which were needed on the first floor. The centring work on the ground floor was over and the workers wanted to take all the work materials to the first floor.

Reddy went into the sump first, followed by Srinivas and Swamy. Due to lack of oxygen, Reddy lost consciousness and fainted. Srinivas and Swamy began feeling giddy, but managed to climb up with help from other workers at the site.

Passersby informed the police, who in turn called up the Fire and Emergency Services and an ambulance.

A Fire and Emergency Services team rushed to the spot and pulled Reddy out the sump. A medical team tried to resuscitate him, but their efforts were futile, the police said.

The Peenya police have booked the owner of the building Shivamurthy and contractor Rangaswamy over criminal negligence for not providing safety equipment to the workers. Further investigations are underway.