Two U.S. Navy Contractors Killed by Falling Buoy at Pearl Harbor Facility

File photo of the Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility at Middle Loch, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

Two civilian contractors were killed Wednesday morning after being hit by a falling five-ton buoy at Pearl Harbor’s Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility.

The buoy reportedly fell from a height of about 70-feet onto a barge where four contractors were standing. One of the men died instantly, while the second victim was hit in the head and later died from his injuries. The two others also sustained injuries but were listed in stable condition.

The workers were reportedly strengthening mooring lines on the 820-foot decommissioned amphibious ship Tarawa when the accident occurred.

The four contractors were employees of Healy Tibbitts Builders, Inc.

The buoy was described as being 12 to 15 feet in diameter and weighing about 10,000 lbs.

The Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility in Pearl Harbor is one of three Inactive Ships On-Site Maintenance Offices in the U.S., where inactivated Navy ships are brought for long-term storage.

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