Checker Struck and Killed By Reversing Reachstacker [Karachi, PK – 17 March 2019]

Posted by admin on Mar 24, 2019 in Bulletins

With great regret, Blueoceana Company has been informed that a 58 year old marine terminal worker (a checker) was struck and killed by a reversing reachstacker late in the evening of 17 March 2019 at the Hutchison Ports facility known as Karachi International Container Terminal (KICT). We understand that he died in hospital, less than an hour after being transported there by ambulance.

KICT is a stand alone operation situated on approximately 26 hectares (64 acres) with 3 container vessel berths, 11 ship-to-shore gantry cranes, 29 rubber tired gantry cranes, 6 MT handlers, 10 reachstackers, 66 yard tractors and 75 yard trailers.

Presently, it is unknown to us whether or not any of KICT’s rolling yard plant is equipped with reverse sensing features. Below, we provide a photographic depiction of a segment of the facility’s container yard:

Update – 03 April 2019:  From a friend in Pakistan, Blueoceana Company has acquired a letter recently sent to the terminal operator by a regional Safety & Health Committee comprised of workers employed by Hutchison at several facilities in Pakistan, Indonesia and Australia. The letter alerts the employer of the Committee’s deep concern over a pattern of events leading up to several fatal accidents at Hutchison terminals in those countries.

We provide a link to that letter here: