11 May 2017

Deadly gas cylinder one of several corroded - TAIC

5:54 pm on 11 May 2017

A gas cylinder that exploded on a cruise ship in Dunedin - killing a worker - had 75 percent of the metal corroded away, a report has found.

The explosion happened onboard the Emerald Princess.

The explosion happened onboard the Emerald Princess (file photo). Photo: RNZ / Ian Telfer

A Filipino man was killed on the Emerald Princess in February when a nitrogen cylinder exploded during maintenance on the ship's lifeboat launching system at Port Chalmers.

The cylinder hit and killed the man before flying over the railings onto the wharf below.

The Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) interim report released today found the cylinder had corroded to the point where 75 percent of the metal had rusted away.

It found that several other cylinders on the ship had similar levels of corrosion.

The commission recommended that the Italian manufacturer immediately inspect every cylinder on ships with similar systems.