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Man injured in dockside crane 'collapse'

Catherine LeeNorth East
Thomas Ord Aerial view of a container ship at a dock. It is a low-lying, orange coloured vessel, its deck stacked with containers. A crane lies crumpled next to it with the top part resting on the vessel's control tower.Thomas Ord
The crane has collapsed on to part of a container vessel

A man has been taken to hospital after a crane appears to have collapsed on a ship at a dock on the south bank of the River Tyne.

Northumbria Police said it was called to South Shields Port of Tyne at 13:00 BST after "it was reported that, for reasons yet to be established, a ship had collided with a crane".

Images show the crane on its side and leaning on to part of a container vessel.

North East Ambulance service (NEAS) said the man was transported to Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle. Police said the man's condition was not thought to be life threatening.

A Northumbria Police spokesperson said: "Just after 13:00 today, we received a report of concern for the safety of a person at the Port of Tyne in South Shields.

"It was reported that, for reasons yet to be established, a ship had collided with a crane.

"Emergency services attended and a man was found to have sustained injuries not believed to be life-threatening."

The man remains in hospital and inquiries are ongoing, the force added.

Urbex Drone View Aerial view of the side of a large container ship. It is orange with BG Freight Line on the side, and a number of containers on deck. Behind it and to the left can be seen part of a collapsed crane. Large numbers of containers are stacked on the dock beside it, and on the river next to it is a tug.Urbex Drone View
The port specialises in cargo freight

The Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service also confirmed it had attended the scene.

A spokesperson for NEAS said: "We were called to an incident in which a person was injured at the Port of Tyne, South Shields, at 13:02.

"We dispatched three double crewed ambulances, two clinical team leaders, a duty officer, three vehicles from our Hazardous Area Response Team (HART) and were supported by Great North Air Ambulance Service."

They said a HART vehicle remained at the scene "on standby to support the fire service".

Mike from Urbex Drone View, who arrived after the incident had happened, said he had gone to the dock to take footage and was "met with the tangled wreckage of the dockside crane, highlighting the sheer force of the incident".

"Behind a line of emergency service vehicles, I could also see that several cargo containers aboard the BG Orange had been dislodged from their original positions," he said.

He said he felt the "extent of the damage" showed it was a "serious incident".

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