TABANAN

An explosion at a Tabanan welding workshop killed a customer and has left the owner open to prosecution under negligence laws.

The incident at the workshop in Tinungan in the Baturiti district occurred at around 11am on February 14. A faulty welding machine exploded, killing a 36-year-old local man, Komang Respati, who was waiting in the shop for mechanics to fix a set of iron lanterns.

Shop owner, Made Windia, 48, said that he was unaware of any problem with the machine.

“Without any warning the machine just exploded. The victim was sitting in front of it and he fell to the ground with burns on his neck and arms,” Windia said. Windia and his son Rusma Adi, who were working in the shop at the time, were uninjured.

Baturiti Police chief Gusti Putu Sudara told reporters on Tuesday he was hoping Windia could be prosecuted under Article 359 of the Criminal Code for negligence leading to loss of life. The workshop had been sealed as a possible crime scene, he said.

“We are holding the owner of the workshop as a suspect and we are processing the case,” Sudara said.