10 workers killed at Istanbul construction site

Turkish workers were killed when a lift fell from 32nd storey of a building at a central Istanbul construction site

ANKARA: Ten Turkish workers were killed when a lift fell from the 32nd storey of a building and crashed to the ground at a central Istanbul construction site, local media reported on Sunday.

Istanbul governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu told Hurriyet newspaper an investigation had been launched into the incident, which occurred at around 7.45 pm local time (1645 GMT) on Saturday.

"Judicial authorities will publicise what was missing in terms of work safety," he was quoted as saying.

The incident happened at a construction site for a 42-storey housing block in Istanbul's central Mecidiyekoy district.

Hurriyet reported that 36 of the building's floors had been completed.

Authorities said eight people have been detained in connection with the incident, which were later released after hearing their testimonies.

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has termed the workers' deaths "very painful and very saddening". "The investigation will be carried out in detail," he told reporters in his home city of Konya in central Anatolia province.

The exact cause of the accident remains unclear. There have been claims that the elevator broke down two weeks ago and that workers were awaiting funds to repair it.

Labour and Social Security Minister Faruk Celik said the accident happened after a freight elevator workers used to carry construction materials derailed, with workers and building materials crashing to the ground.

"We will go after (the guilty people) if there is any negligence or shortcoming," he was quoted as saying by Turkish media.

The building's owner Aziz Torun denied any responsibility, as well as the possibility of a technical problem with the elevator.

"I used the same elevator 10 days ago," Torun told a press conference.

"The elevator is supposed to carry both people and materials. It can carry 2700 kilos of freight or 28 people," he said.

"Authorities and the prosecutor will decide" what caused the accident, he added.

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu called the workers' deaths "very painful and very saddening".

"The investigation will be carried out in detail," he told reporters on Sunday in his home city of Konya in central Anatolia.

The incident put Turkey's poor record of workplace safety under further scrutiny.

In May, 301 miners died in the western town of Soma in what was Turkey's worst ever industrial accident. Most of the dead were killed by carbon monoxide poisoning.

Turkey has the world's third highest rate of deadly workplace accidents, according to the International Labour Organisation.

Protests erupt

Hundreds protested in Istanbul on Sunday, a day after the incident took place in which the 10 workers were killed.

"This is not an accident, this is murder!" the crowd of up to 1,000 people, angry at Turkey's abysmal workplace safety record, shouted as they gathered near the construction site in Istanbul's central Mecidiyekoy district while riot police looked on.

Police fire tear gas

Police stepped in and fired tear gas and water cannon at protesters as more than 1,000 people gathered near the construction site in Istanbul's upscale Mecidiyekoy district to express their anger at Turkey's lax workplace safety measures.