SINGAPORE - A 60-year-oldSingaporean lorry crane operator died in an accident on Wednesday at a construction site near Pasir Ris MRT station. He was in the crane operator's seat of a lorry that was transporting metal construction materials when the materials toppled on him and pinned him, said the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF).

The SCDF had received a call about the accident at about 11.45am. Two fire engines, a Red Rhino, two special appliances and an ambulance were sent. The man was pronounced dead by paramedics at the scene. His body was removed by repositioning the crane boom and removing the materials.

The accident happened at the construction site of Pasir Ris One, a public housing development under the Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS). Mr Tng Bi Da, a director of Kay Lim Construction & Trading, listed as the builder for the construction project, said the lorry crane involved had been supplied by a sub-contractor.

Officers from the Manpower Ministry were on-site to investigate. A ministry spokesman said the victim was crushed during "lifting operations". The ministry is investigating and has instructed Kay Lim to stop all work at the site.

Police are also investigating the unnatural death.

There were three police vehicles near the scene at about 2pm. About 10 people, believed to be the victim's family members, waited outside the construction site for at least an hour before entering at about 3.30pm.