A major accident in a dry dock at Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding (SWS) in China during the assembly of a container ship newbuilding earlier this month led to a number of fatalities and injuries.
It is understood the accident happened on 16 June close to 6pm during the dry-dock assembly of an X-Press Feeders 7,000-teu boxship.
TradeWinds has seen video footage of the accident, in which a large block section mounted on the hull of the newbuilding dramatically falls into the dry dock.
The accident happens shortly after the section was positioned on the hull.
Shipbuilding experts consulted by TradeWinds suggest it appears the hull section had not been mounted correctly when a rope securing the block was released.
The accident was not disclosed by SWS but the yard confirmed it had taken place when approached by TradeWinds.
The shipyard declined to offer any further details as it said the accident is currently under investigation.
SWS did not comment on the number of fatalities.
TradeWinds is told that three people may have died in the accident, with a further six sent to hospital.
X-Press Feeders has also been approached for comment.
The accident will inevitably raise questions over safety procedures at the shipyard during a routine part of the production process.
The SWS production schedule is tightly packed, with 67 ships on order for delivery into 2026.
The backlog is made up mostly of 7,000-teu container ships but also includes car carriers, aframax tankers and bulk carriers.
Faced with a heavy workload, SWS, a wholly owned subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corp, has recently been subcontracting work to Shanghai Shipyard.
The SWS accident comes shortly after three security guards at Wuhu Shipyard in China were reportedly killed after a 450-tonne gantry crane was blown over by strong winds.
Winds of more than force 12 hit Sanshan Economic Development Zone, where Wuhu Shipyard is located.
The strong winds caused a crane at one of the two slipways to keel over, crashing into a nearby security post that housed three security guards on duty.
