Fact-Check: Unrelated incident of fire drill at a factory shared as COVID19 related incident

As Covid-19 infection has been spreading in Cambodia, a video clip was published on social media with a caption saying more than 400 workers ran out of their garment factory in outskirt of the capital of Phnom Penh after a medical team went down to collect samples from some workers. The video clip along with such claim had been watched and shared thousand times along with a mixture of comments and reactions. After interviewing with a local official, however, it is found out the claim is false.

Social Media Claim

A Facebook page posted a video clip depicting a group of people running out of a building. The Facebook page claimed people in the video clip are garment workers who were panic and run out of their factory after learning that a medical team went down to collect sample for Covid-19 tests from some workers. The claim author said they are workers at a garment factory located at outskirt of Phnom Penh.

The video clip had been watched and shared thousand times along with a mixture of comments and reactions from Khmer-speaking Facebook users.

Below is a capture of the video post with caption reads: “400 garment workers at Jet Star located in Dangkor district were panic after a medical team from the [health] ministry went down to collect sample from a worker for Covid-19 test. The result had yet been known; they were panic and run out of the factory. After an explanation from the factory’s administration, they returned to work.”

Facebook Post | Archived Link

The video clip was deleted from the Facebook page some hour later. However, it had been shared and published by many other Facebook pages within hours. The full video clip can be watch through a link here or archived link below.

Facebook Post | Archived Link

Fact Check

Fact Crescendo Cambodia begins checking the video clip by interviewing local officials, Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia (GMAC), and the claim author as well.

In an interview with Fact Crescendo Cambodia, Chim Sitha – Police Inspector of Phnom Penh’s Dangkor district – said his police officers went down to the factory and that no factory named Jestar located in the area.

The video clip had deleted from the Facebook page two weeks after it was published on the social media on March 10. However, Fact Crescendo Cambodia found out phone number listed with the Facebook page.

In an interview with Fact Crescendo Cambodia on March 20, a man told his name is Bun Dara who is a reporter for ENN Hot News and the owner of the Facebook page which published the video clip and caption.

Dara said he got the video clip from his co-worker and then published the video without having gotten any verification from relevant authorities and the factory.

He added he removed the video clip from his social media page after he and his colleague found no factory at the area and a verification from GMAC.

In an interview with Fact Crescendo Cambodia, Ken Loo – GMAC’s Director-General – said the name of the factory was not listed in the association book, and that no such an incident has been reported from members.

In an interview with Fact Crescendo Cambodia, Ouk Chanthou – Director of Inspection Department at the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training – said a group of officials from the ministry went down to the area and found a medical team from the health ministry did go to get Covid-19 sample related to February 20 outbreak.

But he said the video clip published on social media is not the incident took place at the garment factory. He added it is an old clip depicting fire drill conducted at a garment factory at a province two years ago.

Conclusion

Fact Crescendo Cambodia found out the video clip with the caption is a misleading. Officials said no incident took place at the garment factory. The video clip published on social media was a fire drill conducted at a garment factory located in a province two years ago.