Scottish worker dies after fall from ship in Gran Canaria

Colin Gillespie died in the Canary Islands. Picture: LinkedIn

Colin Gillespie, a crane operator for the Aberdeen-based Stena Drilling, was returning to the company’s IceMax drilling vessel in Las Palmas when he fell from the quayside and suffered a fatal head injury around 11:30pm on Saturday evening.

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The 53-year-old from Dundee was pulled from the water but died.

Stena Drilling has launched an investigation into the incident.

In a statement the company said: “Stena Drilling Limited confirm a tragic accident has occurred involving one of our crewmembers whilst returning from shore leave to the vessel Stena IceMAX in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Spain.

“The crane operator was returning to the ship on Saturday night, when it appears that he fell from the quayside into the water.

“He was recovered from the water and emergency medical response procedures were initiated, but sadly he did not recover.

“Relevant Spanish authorities have been notified, with support services being co-ordinated through the shore based incident response team at Stena Drilling’s head office.

“An investigation is underway into this tragic accident and our deepest sympathy goes to family members and next of kin.”

The Stena IceMAX is a harsh environment vessel which can drill in water depths up to 10,000ft and has room for 180 people.