Antwerp(Brussels Morning Newspaper) –A 51-year-old man dies in an industrial incident at the port of Antwerp. The victim was working at the PSA container terminal when he was run over by a tractor with a trailer. “Out of respect, work at the terminal in question will be halted until tomorrow. A minute’s silence will also be observed in every shift, including in Zeebrugge,” PSA said.
The accident occurred at night on Tuesday at around 8 pm at the breakbulk terminal of PSA. According to the labour audit (public prosecutor’s office of the labour court), the exact circumstances of the accident are still being investigated. We are now shifting to the care of our colleagues, and we shall suspend the work at breakbulk to tomorrow morning, as reported by VRT.
According to the facts, it is stated to have happened when the tractor with trailer took bend. Among others, a Service for the Supervision of Well-being at Work came into the picture and went all out.
“Safety is always our highest priority. We are fully cooperating with the investigation,”
said Kim Vandenbroucke of PSA.
“We are now focusing on the care of our colleagues and will suspend work at breakbulk until tomorrow morning,”
it continues.
“A minute’s silence will be held at all terminals today and tomorrow.
said Kim Vandenbroucke of PSA.
The Tuesday night accident is the second fatal industrial accident in the port of Antwerp in a couple of weeks. At the end of April, a 29-year-old citizen of Antwerp died in an accident during repair work on a silo of Boortmalt malthouse. The man dropped about 10 meters down.
What is the history of industrial accidents in the Port of Antwerp region?
The Port of Antwerp is one of the largest and busiest seaports in Europe, with a long history of disastrous industrial accidents and hazardous incidents. The port has seen dock workers and stevedores dying in deadly accidents over the years. For example, in 2024, a stevedore was crushed by a gantry crane and a hatch cover and died during cargo discharge, indicating that there are still dangers in cargo handling operations, as reported by Mfame.
In another tragic incident, three dockworkers died from suffocation when cleaning a cargo hold on board a ship, re-emphasising the dangers associated with confined space entry.
The port has also been affected by chemical hazards, including a major fire in warehouses stocking highly toxic and explosive chemicals of the SEVESO 2 Directive, which led to environmental pollution and operational obstructions. In 2016, an explosion occurred in an industrial waste treatment plant located in the port area, leading to a big fire and smoke, hence health warnings to the neighbouring people.
