INDIA’S SHIPBREAKING YARD “A DEATH ZONE”

AHMEDABAD, India|30 June, 2014

A major gas explosion at Asia's largest shipbreaking yard on the west coast of India occurred on Saturday. The major explosion blast which claimed 5 lives, leaving scores injured at Alang shipbreaking yard in the Bhavnagar district of Gujarat occurred in mid-morning hours as workers were dismantling a chemical tanker.

The Local senior police officer reported that only five people died following the explosion due to gas leakage in the ship on which they were working. The statement contradicts the local media reports which indicated that the number of fatalities and injuries reported may be underestimated in the blast at the ship breaking yard.

It is believed that hot work being performed ignited gases still inside the vessel, causing the blast. The Police officials said an investigation was underway and the exact cause of the gas leak was not yet known.

Ship breaking in Alang is considered one of the most dangerous jobs in India for its lax health and safety standards and access to medical care. Ship recycling and the practice of ‘beaching’ in places like India, Pakistan and Bangladesh is still highly controversial despite regulation from the IMO and various other governing bodies to make the practice safer for workers and the environment.