A fatal steam generator explosion at the unregistered Chan Seng Heng garment factory in southwestern Phnom Penh, Cambodia took lives of two and injured four others.
The explosion took place when the workers were on a lunch break. One security guard and one cleaner were among the deceased.
Neth Mony Ponnaka, Director of Phnom Penh Department of Industry and Handicraft said, “A specialized team will inspect the garment factory which opened on April 1 and was not yet registered with the department. They made a mistake, and my department was not aware of it. We will talk with the owner. The department did not get the licence from the company, which violates the law on management of handicrafts, Article 23. This owner could be fined.”
According to him, the boilers were “very old and second hand”. A visit to the factory revealed that one of two wood-fired boilers exploded, blowing through walls and roofing, scattering debris across the factory floor and onto the street. Large metal components of the boiler landed as far as 50 metres from where the explosion occurred.
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It may be worth noting that the factory is not listed with the Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC) and is likely a subcontractor, a sector of the industry that represents a significant regulatory gap.
The latest explosion was followed by a recent incident that happened in fortnight in garment factory that costed life of one and wounded seven. The factory makes clothes for Levi Strauss and Dutch retailer C&A.
