Upholding a decision by the lower court, the Superior Court of New Jersey Appellate Division has ruled that Bayonne Dry Dock has no liability for a contractor’s workplace death on April 19th, 2020.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
Laborer/painter Williams Saravia was working for 5 Seasons LSB Corporation, which was sub-contracted by the Bayonne Dry Dock & Repair Corp., and he fell to his death on the aforementioned date while working on a ship without safety equipment.
“The supervisor, whose first language is Korean, ‘pointed to the hatch and then represented not to go in the hatch and then take a rest, using [his] hands.’ Saravia’s first language was Spanish, though he spoke some basic English,” last week’s decision says.
“Saravia’s coworker did not wait for the safety equipment and descended into the anchor
chain locker. Saravia followed, using only a rope secured to a pipe to descend. When the co-worker had reached the bottom of the anchor chain locker, he heard Saravia shout ‘I cannot hold on any longer. I’m losing my grip.’ Saravia fell to the bottom of the anchor chain locker, suffering multiple traumas. He was pronounced dead at the scene.”
No Bayonne Dry Dock employees were present when the incident occurred, the court ruling also notes.
Hudson County Superior Court Judge Veronica Allende had previously ruled that Saravia “died from injuries sustained while performing a task controlled exclusively by 5 Seasons,” as well as later denying a reconsideration motion.
She rejected the notion that the language barrier that contributed to Saravia’s death was Bayonne Dry Dock’s fault, along with the notion that 5 Seasons had an unsafe work record.
“While Saravia’s workplace death is tragic, based on the record before us, it would be unfair and unsound public policy to impose a duty of care upon Bayonne Dry Dock to ensure that 5 Seasons’ employees, such as Saravia, safely performed their work,” Appellate Judges Thomas W. Sumners, Jr. and Morris Smith wrote.
“It was unequivocally understood that 5 Seasons had the duty to ensure that its employees safely performed their job. Plaintiff has not articulated any public interest in expanding that duty to Bayonne.”
