An employee of the capital's CHP-3 plant suffered severe burns to her face and hands from sulphuric acid. She subsequently underwent surgery to graft skin from her leg onto her arm.
Gulnur Sadykova, who worked as a process operator at the new CHP plant, has been in hospital for over 20 days, reports the First Channel 'Eurasia'.
The operator's duties include, among other things, checking the condition of the acid pumping through the pipes. This must be done every half hour.
On 20 July, while carrying out her duties, Ms Sadykova suffered severe burns due to an accident at her workplace.
"I didn't expect it myself. The hose burst, and the sulphuric acid poured over me. I started screaming. My face and arm were completely drenched; my arm was the worst affected. When I arrived here, the doctor immediately told me that an operation would most likely be needed.", the woman recounted.
According to Ms Sadykova, CHP staff systematically recorded the presence of bursts and fistulas in the pipes. In her words, management knew about these issues.
"It was probably bound to happen eventually, because there were constant fistulas there. As I said, it had been going on since November: they constantly repair things, work on them, but they never finish the job properly.", the victim noted.
The State Labour Inspector has headed a special commission which will investigate the circumstances of the incident. A representative from the energy oversight body is also on the commission.
"An inspection of the accident site has been carried out. An action plan, the necessary documents for the investigation, and a diagram of the scene have been prepared. There will be no falsifications. The employer will be held responsible for any falsification.", stated Abai Yerkinov, chief specialist of the occupational safety and health department.
The Deputy Chairman of the Board for Production at JSC 'Astana-Energy', Oleg Garmonshchikov, noted that safety regulations had been complied with. He stated that the company is ready to provide assistance.
The investigation will last up to 30 days, after which the labour inspectors will hand over the materials to the police.