Overview

• Emergency crews were called around 03:45 to the Schwelgern harbor in Duisburg, where the incident occurred during night maneuvering and coupling work.
• The ship’s master found the steersman lying lifeless in an open under-deck hatch, and an emergency doctor later pronounced him dead after unsuccessful resuscitation attempts.
• The deceased was a Filipino seaman serving as steersman on a Dutch koppelverband during a coupling operation.
• The Water Police’s central criminal commission has opened an investigation, and the employers’ liability insurance association and the man’s family have been notified.
• Authorities consider a work accident most likely but have not excluded an internal medical emergency, and an autopsy has been ordered to determine the cause of death.