A local court on Wednesday ordered the local government and a construction company to compensate the family of a boy who drowned at a pool in 2023, citing faulty construction and inadequate safety management as contributing factors.
The Incheon District Court said the victim's family partially won a civil suit seeking approximately 600 million won ($412,000) in damages from North Gyeongsang Province's Ulleung County, construction company officials and others responsible for the facility's construction and management.
The court ordered the county and three construction company officials to jointly pay about 485 million won in damages. However, the court dismissed the family's claims against seven other defendants, including the county mayor, public officials and the facility's designer.
The accident occurred on Aug. 1, 2023, at a pool operated by the county. A 12-year-old boy entered a restricted area beneath a pool play structure through an unlocked door and was later found dead after his arm became trapped in an underwater drain.
Investigators found that the drain did not have the proper safety cover included in the original design plans. Instead, workers had welded a simple metal grill, similar to those used for barbecues, over the opening.
“The facility had serious problems in both construction and management, and those problems directly led to the victim’s death,” the court said.
The court pointed out that the drainage equipment included in the original design had been left out during construction, and that the contractor failed to report the change to the county.
A separate criminal trial involving county officials and those from the construction company accused of professional negligence resulting in death is currently underway at an appeals court.
junheee@heraldcorp.com
