Brazilian Worker Killed Disassembling Olympic Venues In Rio

Photo Courtesy: David Rieder

A Brazilian construction worker lost his life this week while disassembling one of the many temporary venues at Barra Olympic Park in Rio.

According to a report from The Rio Times, one worker was electrocuted and another working to disassemble the Beach Volleyball arena at Copacabana Beach had to have his leg amputated after a pair of separate accidents.

The article notes that more than one hundred safety inspectors hired to oversee the projects were recently fired, and several cost-cutting measures (including using less qualified workers and cheaper equipment) were taken after organizers could not make all necessary payments during the initial construction stage.

The Rio 2016 Organizing Committee did confirm these reports to media in Brazil, but it shifted responsibility to companies that hired the contract workers.

“We had no control over these events; they were at our facilities but the two accidents were outsourced operations,” said Rio 2016 Communications Director Mario Andrada. “The fault is not ours, it is of those who hire employees, either of lower or higher quality.”

The venues utilized at the Olympics included pre-existing facilities, new arenas and temporary structures. The Olympic Aquatic Center, home of swimming and later rounds of water polo, fell into the later category, as did the adjacent Future Arena, which hosted handball.

The Maria Lenk Aquatic Center, which hosted diving, synchro and remaining water polo events, was pre-existing, as it had been built for the Pan American Games in 2007.

Read more from The Rio Times here.

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