Bangladeshi worker dies in Tuas lorry accident: Girl waits for father who will never call again
Kok Yufeng
The Straits Times
January 10, 2024
Even though they were almost 3,000km apart, six-year-old Saima Islam was comforted by her father's voice every day.
Employed as a welder in Singapore, he would call his family in Bangladesh after the day's work was done.
But the night of Dec 14, 2024, was the last time they heard from him. Mr Shohag Mohammad, 40, was killed in an accident while travelling in the back of a lorry in Tuas the next morning.
Since then, Saima has been asking why her father has stopped calling home, said Mr Shohag's brother, Mr Mohammad Siraj.
Speaking to The Straits Times via a translator, Mr Siraj said the family is still in shock.
The phone call they received on Dec 15, from Mr Shohag's employer, CK2 Engineering, telling them that he had died in a lorry accident, was a bolt from the blue.
Describing Mr Shohag as generous, respectful and loving, Mr Siraj, 55, who works as a mechanic, said his brother would describe Singapore as a safe place to work and say he never had any issues here.
Besides his young daughter, Mr Shohag leaves his wife, Sarida, who is in her 20s; his mother, who is in her late 70s; and four other family members, all living in Munshiganj district, about an hour away from Bangladesh's capital city Dhaka.
Mr Siraj said the money that Mr Shohag sent home - about 40,000 taka (S$450) a month - was important as it helped to pay for the family's daily expenses.
"We miss him a lot," Mr Siraj said, adding that the worry now is for the future of Mr Shohag's daughter.
According to official documents seen by ST, Mr Shohag was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident in Tuas South Avenue 9 at about 10am on Dec 15. "Multiple injuries" was listed as the cause of death.
His body was examined at the mortuary of the Health Sciences Authority's Forensic Medicine Division, before it was returned to Bangladesh, arriving in Mr Shohag's home town two days after the accident.
Records show that Mr Shohag was trained as a shipyard worker, attending safety courses conducted by Singapore firms as far back as 2008.
However, the circumstances of the accident, which injured two other workers, remain unclear.
It has been said that a heavy tool box at the back of the lorry had fallen onto Mr Shohag, but ST has not been able to verify this claim. It is understood that no other vehicles were involved.
In a written parliamentary question on Jan 7, Labour MP Melvin Yong asked whether the transportation of an improperly secured item in the lorry's rear deck caused the death.
In response, Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat said the Traffic Police were unable to comment further because of ongoing investigations.
Mr Chee said early investigations showed the lorry had been transporting a heavy metal box with three workers in the rear deck. He said the findings of police investigations will be presented during a future coroner's inquiry.
The minister also noted that the driver of the lorry is being investigated for causing death by a negligent act, which carries a maximum penalty of a two-year jail term and a fine.
The police had previously said that the lorry driver, 41, was arrested for causing death by careless driving without due care and attention. That is a different offence that carries a maximum penalty of three years in jail and a $10,000 fine.
CK2 Engineering's director, Mr Kaliamoorthi Suresh Kumar, said this was the first such incident in the company's history. He declined to say more, citing the need to wait for the investigations to conclude.
He said the company will compensate Mr Shohag's family as required under the Work Injury Compensation Act (Wica).
"Mr Shohag was a good employee (who) joined us three months ago," he said.
Mr Suresh added that the two other workers injured in the accident, aged 26 and 29, have been discharged from hospital, and they are on medical leave until the end of January.
"We have provided the necessary monetary support for them to get well," he said, without providing specifics.
Lawyer Ng Yuan Siang of Eugene Thuraisingam law firm said injuries arising from an accident involving a lorry carrying workers would usually fall under Wica.
This is because the law covers injuries suffered by employees while travelling on company transport to and from their workplace.
In case of death, employers must pay a lump sum based on the employee's average monthly earnings.
There is a minimum payout of $76,000 and a cap of $225,000. From November 2025, these will rise to $91,000 and $269,000, respectively.
Mr Ng said employers are obligated to file an incident report with the Ministry of Manpower within 10 days of the accident, which triggers the claims process.
He said Mr Shohag's family may also explore a civil claim, and they have up to a year to decide. But the family cannot pursue a Wica claim and a civil claim at the same time.
Meanwhile, non-profit organisation Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2) has been raising funds to help tide Mr Shohag's family over.
The donation drive, which will end on Jan 20, has raised $12,125 so far, exceeding its $10,000 target. Those who wish to donate can do so at this website.
Noting how places such as Dubai in the United Arab Emirates have stopped ferrying workers on the back of lorries since the early 2000s, TWC2 said Singapore is virtually the only first-world country that has continued with this practice.
"Even one death in such lorry accidents is one too many," it added.
