Company 'deeply saddened' by incident, cooperating with authorities
Three researchers died at a Hyundai Motor plant in South Korea's Ulsan City after reportedly suffocating during a car test.
The victims of the incident were two Hyundai researchers and one affiliated with a subcontractor, Yonhap News Agency reported.
According to the report, the three were found unconscious at a test chamber at around 3:00 PM where they were conducting a car performance test.
They were taken to a nearby hospital but were pronounced dead, Yonhap reported, citing company officials and authorities.
It further reported that the victims were "were presumed to have been suffocated due to toxic gas in the enclosed space." The police have already requested autopsies on the bodies to determine their cause of death.
Meanwhile, the Ulsan Metropolitan Police, along with the National Forensic Service, the labour ministry, and the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency, are expected to carry out a joint on-site inspection of the test chamber to look into safety facilities and the performance test.
In a statement to Reuters, Hyundai Motor Company said in a statement that it is "deeply saddened by the incident." It added that it would "cooperate fully with all relevant authorities to determine the cause of this incident."
