SINGAPORE -- The National Environment Agency (NEA) was fined S$230,000 today for work safety failures that contributed to the deaths of two of its officers and the injury of a third in a 2021 explosion at the Tuas Incineration Plant, Channel NewsAsia (CNA) reported.

The blast occurred on Sept 23, 2021, inside a switchgear room when NEA officers were sent to troubleshoot an industrial fan that could not be switched off remotely. Kwok Yeow Wai, 65, and  Wee Eng Leng, 64, died -- one at the scene and the other in hospital three days later -- while Mr Low Yin Choon suffered severe burns over 27 per cent of his body but survived.

A court found NEA guilty of three major safety lapses under the Workplace Safety and Health Act: failing to enforce a proper permit-to-work system for high-voltage operations, not providing fire-retardant protective gear, and lacking safe work procedures for high-risk electrical tasks. Investigators also found that a worn-out piston in the circuit breaker prevented the automatic trip mechanism from functioning, contributing to the explosion, CNA reported.

In court, NEA expressed "deep regret" over the deaths of Mr Kwok and Mr Wee, both highly experienced in electrical maintenance.

The agency has since overhauled its safety practices, requiring licensed electrical workers for high-voltage operations, introducing arc-flash protective suits, and implementing detailed safe work procedures.

According to the report, NEA also set up an external advisory panel, a dedicated workplace safety unit, and restructured its board to include a risk committee to oversee key safety issues.

The Tuas Incineration Plant was decommissioned in 2022 after 36 years of operation, and NEA said it will continue reviewing the court's findings to guide personnel decisions for officers still facing legal proceedings.