The Tribune

By AVA TURNQUEST

Tribune Staff Reporter

aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

BAHA Mar vice president Robert Sands yesterday confirmed that there has been only one construction related death over the course of the $3.4 billion project. While he admitted there have been two deaths, Mr Sands said the first incident was not work-related.

“Baha Mar general contractor China Construction Engineering Corporation makes work sites safety a top priority,” said Mr Sands. “Last year one employee died of natural causes in the dormitories after suffering a heart attack, not on the work site. It was reviewed by officials and documented as not related to construction.”

In the second incident, Mr Sands explained that a Chinese worker died of injuries at hospital after falling on the work site in June.

The worker fell despite appropriate safety gear, Mr Sands said.

Mr Sands added: “CSC treats any accident or death on the Baha Mar site with utmost seriousness and works with local officials to properly document procedures to ensure all workers are safe.”

Mr Sands added that the general contractor has met or exceeded all Bahamian safety regulations, and conducts weekly on-site reviews.

Mr Sands’ statement follows comments made by Deputy Prime Minister Brave Davis last week over the deaths

Mr Davis admitted that very little was known about incidents at the site of the $3.4 billion resort, adding that his ministry is aggressively searching for an occupational safety expert to act as a watchdog for industrial practices on all work sites in the country.

He added that occupational safety on construction job sites has been a heightened concern over the last six months.

Mr Davis confirmed the deaths during his remarks at the official opening of the Airport Gateway Project, where he also held a moment of silence for two Bahamian workers who died during the construction of the dual-lane highway.