Longshoreman Dies After Falling From Boxship at Tanjung Pelepas

A Bangladeshi longshoreman has died after falling over the side of a container ship at the port of Tanjung Pelepas, Malaysia, according to local fire and rescue officials.

At about 1115 hours Tuesday, the local fire department received a request for emergency assistance at the port. An individual who had been working aboard the Panamax boxship ALS Clivia had gone over the side and fallen about 20 feet into the water.

The local fire department sent a 24-man search team to look for the missing longshoreman, including a rescue diving unit. They concentrated their search for the victim within about 75 feet of the point where he went over the side, without initial success. Photos from the scene showed rescuers focusing their efforts in the space between the vessel and the dock.

The operation had to be temporarily suspended at 1500 hours Tuesday because of rough surface conditions, which posed a hazard to the responders. On Wednesday, the search got under way again. Port employees found the victim’s body at about 1830 hours, not far from where the longshoreman had gone into the water.

The victim has been identified as Miah Mohd Ujjal, 35. He was initially reported to be a seafarer from the vessel, but local authorities later clarified that he was a port worker and had fallen while lashing containers.

ALS Clivia has departed Tanjung Pelepas and is under way in the Indian Ocean, bound for Tema, Ghana.