Five workers missing after underwater tunnel collapses in Japan

Five workers missing after underwater tunnel collapses in Japan

2012-02-07 22:27:19 GMT+7 (ICT)

OKAYAMA, TOKYO (BNO NEWS) -- Five workers went missing on early Tuesday afternoon when the walls of an underwater tunnel in southwestern Japan collapsed, officials said. Search and rescue operations have since been suspended.

The accident happened at around 12:35 p.m. local time at the Mizushima oil refinery in Kurashiki, a historic city which sits on the Takahashi River near the Seto Inland Sea. The refinery is owned by JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corp., the largest oil company in Japan.

One of the six people working inside the tunnel managed to escape when the walls collapsed, quickly flooding the tunnel with water. The five other workers, who were located about 140 meters (460 feet) from the entrance to the tunnel, were trapped inside and remain missing.

JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corp. identified three of the missing men as workers from a construction company in Chita, Aichi Prefecture, and the remaining two as employees of a construction firm in the capital of Tokyo. The missing men are all between the ages of 38 and 61.

The tunnel, which goes to a depth of about 35 meters (114 feet) and is about 820 meters (0.5 mile) long, has been under construction since 2010 and is scheduled to be completed in 2013. The tunnel is to connect two JX Nippon refineries and will carry pipelines to transport oil and semi-finished products.

Police divers suspended search and rescue operations at approximately 3 p.m. local time due to poor visibility and dangerous conditions in the tunnel. A police spokesman said debris and oil were floating through the tunnel, making it impossible for divers to search for the missing.

The Mizushima refinery is located at a coastal industrial zone where other factories also exist, including petrochemical and steel companies.

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