Seafarer Struck and Killed by Container at Port of Dublin

On November 14, a crewmember from the container ship Francop was struck and killed at Southbank Quay, Dublin while container lifting operations were underway. 

The crewmember, identified as Philippine national Dennis Gomez Regana, was working on lashing and securing cargo Wednesday morning when a container fell on top of him. Emergency services arrived at the scene at about 0845 hours, but were unable to revive him. 

Ireland's Health and Safety Authority and the Gardai have launched an investigation into the cause of the accident. 

After the casualty, dockers' unions renewed calls for lashing work to be reserved for longshoremen. "Working in the docklands is a dangerous work environment. The activity that the poor man was involved in was unregulated," said SIPTU union organizer Jerry Brennan in a statement. “The seafarers have already put in their day's work so whenever they come into port they should be resting and not dealing with containers. Lashing and securing should be done by dock workers who are familiar with the crane driver."

In a statement, the International Transport Workers Federation expressed its condolences for Regana's family, and it concurred with SIPTU. "Lashing is dockers' work, full stop," said ITF maritime coordinator Jacqueline Smith. "We have to put an end to unscrupulous shipowners and port operators putting pressure on seafarers to do lashing and securing. I hope they take notice of this tragedy today and change their ways."