Six Vietnamese workers were killed when an oxygen tank exploded at the construction site of a hydropower plant in Laos’ Bolikhamsai Province, a Vietnamese border army chief confirmed on Saturday. — Photo vnexpress.net

BOLIKHAMSAI — Six Vietnamese workers were killed when an oxygen tank exploded at the construction site of a hydropower plant in Laos’ Bolikhamsai Province, a Vietnamese border army chief confirmed on Saturday.

Võ Trọng Hải, border force chief of Hà Tĩnh Province that shares a border with Bolikhamsai Province, told the media that the explosion occurred at about 10pm on Friday night, killing six workers at the scene and leaving two additional Vietnamese seriously injured.

All of the victims were working for the Vietnamese corporation Sông Đà 5, a contractor of the construction site of the Nậm Nghiệp 1 hydropower plant in Bolikhan District.

Thanh Chương District People’s Committee Chairman Nguyễn Văn Quế in Nghệ An Province confirmed that three of the victims were from the district. They were Trần Văn Sáng, 29, Hà Cao Kỳ, 24 and 26-year-old Nguyễn Văn Phương. Another two Nghệ An men also lost their lives in the explosion: Già Bá Lầu, 32, from Tương Dương District and 34-year-old Và Xái Cồ from Kỳ Sơn District. The last victim was 25-year-old Hạ Hữu Hai from Phú Thọ Province’s Đoan Hùng District.

The two injured, both from Nghệ An Province, are being treated at hospital. They are Thờ Bá Chênh and Lỳ Giống Xía, 33 and 46 respectively.

The bodies of the workers were brought back to their hometown on Saturday night for burial.

Sông Đà 5 Chairman of the Board Trần Anh Đức told Tuổi trẻ (Youth) on Saturday that he was leaving for the Nậm Nghiệp 1 power plant site to inspect the scene and investigate the cause of the accident. — VNS