A police spokeswoman said officers were alerted at 9.30am yesterday to an incident on a vessel at Southport, Bluff, where a person died suddenly.
Maritime New Zealand and police were working to establish what happened, the spokeswoman said.
A WorkSafe spokesman said it was notified of the incident but Maritime New Zealand was investigating because it happened on board a vessel.
A Maritime New Zealand spokesman confirmed it had commenced an investigation into a fatal incident on board the MSC Resilient III, which was moored at Southport.
Two Maritime NZ investigators had been sent to Bluff and where working to understand what led to the fatality.
"Our thoughts go out to those impacted by this incident," the spokesman said.
A St John spokesman said it was called to Foreshore Rd, Bluff, at 9.15am.
An ambulance, a first response unit and a manager responded, the spokesman said.
A spokeswoman for South Port said the vessel involved was the Liberian-flagged container ship MSC Resilient III and the incident involved a crewman who was a foreign national.
The incident happened offshore and did not involve any cargo activity, the spokeswoman said.
Maritime Union of New Zealand national secretary Craig Harrison said he understood that shore-based stevedores had finished work on the vessel when the incident occurred.
The container ship had its own cranes, but had been worked by onshore cranes operated by local stevedores, he said.
Initial reports from local workers suggested an incident had occurred when on-board cranes were being moved by crew, Mr Harrison said.
The Maritime Union had ongoing concerns about health and safety aboard overseas-flagged ships working in New Zealand ports.
The Liberian flag was a flag of convenience, and such vessels were notorious for issues around safety and seafarers’ rights.
"These overseas ships, they don’t come under much scrutiny ... The conditions are terrible," Mr Harrison said.
It was tragic to hear to hear a crew member had died and the union would be doing what it could to help the family.
According to online shipping logs, MSC Resilient III departed from Melbourne on December 15.
The shipping agent for MSC Resilient III, Maritime Services South director Steven Kellett, has been approached for comment.
