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Two dead, 13 injured at Bangladeshi shipbreaking yard

Two dead, 13 injured at Bangladeshi shipbreaking yard
A fatal accident at a Bangladeshi shipbreaking yard has led to two deaths and 13 injuries during scrapping operations onboard a container vessel.

According to NGO Shipbreaking Platform, the accident occurred at Ziri Subedar shipbreaking yard on the beach of Chattogram, when a heavy cable collapsed and hit several workers at once.

Two workers lost their lives and 13 others suffered injuries and were taken to a hospital for treatment.

The local authorities ordered the temporary closure of the yard and investigations are ongoing.

Rizwana Hasan, chief executive of the Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA) and NGO Shipbreaking Platform's board member, expressed regret over the accident and said: “Had they acted earlier, we could have saved these invaluable lives. The negligent authorities should also be punished as their failures and seeming cohesion have led to these tragic events.”

The 2005-built, 5,026-teu container vessel was beached in Bangladesh in February 2019. The vessel is identified as CSL Virginia and later renamed to Virgin Star when it was sold for demolition in Bangladesh.

So far this year, 15 shipbreaking workers have lost their lives in Chattogram, according to NGO Shipbreaking Platform.

Read more: Asia Pacific remains top shipping casualty losses in 2018: Allianz