By Kim Sue-young
Staff Reporter
One North Korean was killed and four others injured at the Gaeseong Industrial Complex, Wednesday, after being struck by a falling steel frame, the Unification Ministry said Thursday.
At around 11 a.m., the structure on the construction site of a factory for a South Korean fiber producer fell sideward, causing the casualties.
One South Korean worker also received minor injuries, while the four injured people were taken to a hospital in the North Korean city.
The cause of the accident has not been confirmed yet but complex workers said that heavy rain in the area over the last few days might have weakened the foundations.
On the day of the accident there was torrential rain.
The construction of the two-story building on 41,000 square meters of land began early this year.
``Some have been killed or injured due to industrial accidents within the complex but we have not figured out yet whether this kind of accident has happened before,'' a manager at the complex office said. ``Employers and workers should directly deal with compensation issues.''
A total of 121 accidents took place at the complex up to last April and four South Korean and three North Korean workers have been killed.
Two from the South and three from the North were killed in car accidents.
The inter-Korean economic project, a byproduct of the June 15 Joint Declaration struck by former President Kim Dae-jung and North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in 2000, has been operating since 2002.
Currently, 72 companies have factories at the site employing a total of 30,084 workers, according to the ministry.