When Delmont Blakeney was knocked into the frigid water while working a ship in the Port of Oakland on Saturday August 23rd, there was no ladder available on the pier to help him out. When co-workers finally found one, 40 minutes later, it was too late. He was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

Craig Merrilees, a spokesman for the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, said this is the third death on the Oakland docks in the past year. Merrilees told KTVU News: “Just weeks before, a longshoreworker was thrown into the water and had his arm broken when a line securing a ship suddenly snapped. The worker struggled in the water for nearly an hour because there was no safety equipment, in particular a ladder, nearby to rescue the man.”

Delmont Blakeney was overseeing the offloading of shipping containers from the ship NYK Starlight when he was knocked into the water. A locking device came loose and caused a container to spin out of control. The container hit Blakeney and briefly pinned him against the rail of the ship before he tumbled into the water. He was 77 years old.

Workers, members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 10, were furious and refused to work the following day.