Hong Kong labour representatives call for use of smart safety tech after death of driver

Victims’ rights advocate urges government to consider requiring contractors to adopt AI technologies after fatal accident

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The Lai Kong Street construction site in Kwai Chung, where a dump truck driver was killed on Thursday after his head was crushed between his vehicle and an excavator. Photo: Handout

Published: 7:15pm, 26 Jul 2024Updated: 9:05pm, 26 Jul 2024

Labour rights advocates and construction sector representatives in Hong Kong have called for the industry to step up the use of smart technologies to better protect workers after a dump truck driver died in an accident.

Fay Siu Sin-man, chief executive of the Association for the Rights of Industrial Accident Victims, on Friday urged the government to consider requiring contractors to install cameras and sensors with artificial intelligence (AI) on construction sites.

The calls for better support to workers came a day after the dump truck driver was killed when his head was crushed between his vehicle and an excavator at a Kwai Chung construction site.

The fatal accident prompted authorities to suspend the contractor from tendering for public work.

Siu said smart technologies, including AI cameras and sensors installed on mobile machinery such as excavators, could help in monitoring the surroundings and the movement of workers on construction sites, and send alerts to operating staff or automatically halt machines if safety issues were detected.

The Lai Kong Street worksite in Kwai Chung cordoned off by police after the dump truck diver’s death. Photo: Handout

But she said such technologies had not been widely adopted in the city, attributing the limited use to costs. Only about 700 excavators in the city were installed with such devices, she added.