LA Port Investigating Security Breach after Man Plunges from Gantry Crane

The Port of Los Angeles is looking into the circumstances that led to the security breach at its container terminal on August 16.

Namely, a suspected car thief climbed on a loading gantry crane at the port after a police chase across the city, only to fall to his death from the crane several hours later, as reported by the Associated Press.

The man plunged roughly 150 feet onto a docked freighter, where he was pronounced dead, according to Phillip Sanfield, a spokesman for the Port of Los Angeles, cited by the Los Angeles Times.

It was not clear whether the man jumped or fell unintentionally from the crane.

The container terminal was forced to shut down its operations due to the incident.

“At the direction of Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka, Los Angeles Port Police, in conjunction with the Los Angeles Police Department, have launched a full investigation into all circumstances regarding Wednesday evening’s incident, including the security breach at the container terminal,” the port said in a statement.

“This thorough review, including protocols necessary to address improvements, will be completed as soon as possible.”

World Maritime News Staff