Man Pleads Guilty To Firing 6-cm Long Nail Into Colleague’s Chest With Nail Gun

I think my woodwork and craftsmanship skills are pretty bad.

Flashback to almost failing Design and Technology in secondary school.

Late apology to the teachers I gave trouble to.

If there was one thing I did right, though, it was that I made sure to follow safety procedures every time.

Because in a professional handicraft setting, some of these tools can be deadly if mishandled.

Nail to The Chest

These tools can kill.

According to The New Paper, a Chinese national pleaded guilty to one count of causing hurt by a negligent act that endangered human life on 12 December.

The reason?

He apparently fired a 6cm-long nail into his colleague’s chest with a pneumatic nail gun.

What the heck? How does this happen?

Yang Chengwei, the accused, was subsequently sentenced to a $2,000 fine or, if unable to pay, jail for a day.

Not sure if a day is enough to rectify this horrific incident though.

But what exactly took place?

Carelessness 

Always remember, readers, safety first.

On 24 October, Yang and Mr Miah Ripon, the 27-year-old victim, were assembling wooden boxes at 31 Tuas South Link 4, Level 4.

Mr Miah was measuring the planks and using a hammer while Yang was using the nail gun.

At about 6.15 pm, Mr Miah approached Yang and asked him to secure certain wooden planks together with the nail gun.

Seems normal so far, right?

However, Yang left his right index finger on the trigger of the nail gun which was a violation of safety procedures for handling the tool.

It all went south from here.

Mr Miah pushed Yang’s left shoulder, intending to notify him about nailing the planks.

It was here where, caught by surprise, Yang accidentally raised the nail gun and fired the nail into his colleague’s chest.

I can almost feel the pain just from typing it.

Post-Incident Damages

After tending to him, Mr Miah was taken to the National University Hospital (NUH) for medical treatment.

The poor guy even underwent an operation to remove the nail.

He was given a total of 24 days of hospitalisation leave, including two days in which he was warded in NUH and a further 17 days of medical leave.

I pray he is recovering well.

Now, remember how we told you about the sentencing Yang got?

Well, he was unable to pay the $2,000 fine as he had been unemployed since 22 November.

Oh, and did I forget to mention the guy was also in remand for 25 days?

Double yikes.

Since he could not pay, the District Judge ordered that the Chinese national serve a day in jail in place of the fine.

I still think it’s a little short for the amount of damage caused, though.

Yang could have actually been given a heavier sentence of a maximum of six months’ imprisonment, or a fine of up to $2,500, or both for his negligent act.

Be careful with dangerous equipment, guys.