Man sucked into mammoth vacuum cleaner-style garbage collector

Graphic by Cho Sang-won

By Kang Aa-young

An engineer died after being sucked into a vacuum cleaner-style automatic garbage collection machine in an apartment complex in Namyang, Gyeonggi Province, Tuesday.

The man, 38, identified by his surname Cho, was checking the machine, commercially known as the “Automatic Cleannet,” while doing repairs.

He was found stuck 200 meters into the piping from the opening and about 100 meters from the underground collection bin.

Rescue workers used two excavators to reach the point to release his body.

The system is widely used in new apartment complexes but is prone to problems.

The company that makes the “Automatic Cleannet” says the system works on the principle of a vacuum cleaner, allowing the machine to transfer garbage automatically to a central collection point.