Partygoer Dies in Fall Into Drydock

On Saturday night, a teenage partygoer died after falling about 10 meters to the bottom of a drydock in Bergen, Norway. 

The victim, identified as Steffen Mørner Olsen, 19, had gone to an event at an old shipyard hall refitted to host private events and parties. The venue is right next to the historic Bergens Mekaniske Verksted (BMV) drydock, a stone-walled graving dock that is still used to overhaul tall ships and other vessels. The Statsraad Lehmkuhl, the training ship of the Royal Norwegian Navy, is currently in the dock. 

At about 2145 hours Saturday, an individual found Olsen at the bottom of the drydock and called the police. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene. 

No witnesses to Olsen's death have come forward, and there are no surveillance cameras covering the area, police told local media. It is unclear whether Olsen fell from the side of the dock or from the ship. The drydock has a chest-high perimeter fence, which could have been climbed, police official Arne Fjellstad told VG. 

So far, there are no signs to suggest any crime, and the police are treating the fatality as an accidental fall. 

"I extend deep sympathy to the family and friends, and everyone involved. It's very tragic when a young person dies suddenly like that," Bergen mayor Marit Warncke told local media. 

The drydock at Laksevag dates back to 1872 and is the oldest remaining part of the BMV yard's operations at the site. It was more recently operated by Noryards BMV, an OSV specialist yard that folded in 2016 during the offshore downturn. 

Top image: The BMV Laksevag drydock in Bergen (Cavernia / CC BY SA 4.0)