A judge awarded $2.2 million yesterday to the widow of a construction worker who was killed when a steel rod from a falling concrete skip holding 1.5 tonnes of cement pierced his chest. Wong Tak-yau died on October 17, 1995, at the construction site in Wuhu Street, Kowloon. Deputy Judge Li Zong-er ruled in the Court of First Instance that the main contractor, Hui Shing-fu, and subcontractors Hung Tung Engineering Ltd and Chun Wo Building Construction Ltd were liable for Wong's death due to negligence, breach of statutory duty and breach of common duty of care. The three defendants were also ordered to pay the legal costs of Wong's wife, Kok Fung. A fourth defendant, skip supplier Luen Hing Machinery Factory Ltd, was not found to be liable because, in law, the failure of bolts on the skip was not a cause of the accident.
