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Three Chinese prisoners working at a sewerage construction site in Busan were suffocated by poisonous gas. When a colleague who worked in a narrow manhole did not come up, the other two seemed to go down to find him and died together.

Reporter Song Seong-jun.

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Work is being done to rescue the fallen workers in the manhole.

Today (9th), at around 3:20 pm, three workers who were working in the sewerage manhole ordered by Busan City were suffocated by toxic gas.

The dispatched 119 rescuers rescued them in 40 minutes and moved them to the hospital, but they all died.

All three are Chinese.

It is estimated that two other people went in search and suffered a discomfort when a colleague who worked in a narrow manhole 4m deep and 1m wide did not appear.

All three were found in a narrow passage 20 meters from the bottom of the manhole.

When the gas in the manhole was measured, the carbon monoxide concentration exceeded 1,000 ppm.

A lethal dose that is more than 20 times the allowable value.

[Park Dong-ha / Busan Saha Fire Station Fire Station: 999ppm keeps coming from the entrance of the manhole when we enter and 999ppm keeps rising even when I enter 5m or 10m.]

Rescue workers say they have not found any safety equipment, such as masks, from dead workers.

The police are investigating whether or not they are wearing safety equipment and complying with safety rules.

(Video coverage: Jeong Kyung-moon)