Turkish captain dies in accident at Chinese port

ISTANBUL

A Turkish sailor working on a dry cargo ship died as a result of an accident at a Chinese port.

Selçuk Elibol, a 36-year-old Turkish citizen who served as the captain of the Liberian-flagged ship Mathilde Oldendorff, gave a directive to approach a port in China to pick up cargo.

The 300-meter ship was loaded after docking, but Elibol wanted to see with his own eyes how much the ship’s hull had sunk into the water.

When the Chinese authorities did not permit to embark on the port due to COVID-19 measures, Elibol tried to see the draft using a rope ladder hanging from the side of the ship.

But the sailor lost his balance on the rope ladder and crashed into the concrete floor of the port from a height of about 10 meters.

The first response to the captain was made by medics who came to the port, but Elibol lost his life despite all interventions. Elibol’s body will be sent to Turkey after the procedures in China are completed