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By: Krug Stillo
A devastating explosion at a Staten Island shipyard has left a Queens family grieving and demanding answers after a hardworking immigrant father was killed while trapped inside the belly of a boat during what was supposed to be his final workday before a family trip, according to reporting by the New York Post.
The victim, 57-year-old Xiaoyuan Li, died Friday after a massive blast tore through May Ship Repair in Staten Island’s Mariners Harbor section, injuring dozens of others and sending shockwaves through New York City’s maritime industry.
According to the New York Post, Li was working deep inside a vessel, painting in the lower compartment when he became trapped as chaos unfolded aboard the boat. His family says they received a terrifying call alerting them that he was stuck inside before the explosion erupted roughly 45 minutes later.
The horrifying incident has raised serious questions about workplace safety protocols at the shipyard, as investigators continue working to determine what caused the deadly blast.
The New York Post reported that the explosion injured approximately 30 people, including two firefighters who responded to the emergency. One firefighter was listed in critical condition following the intense fire and blast that tore through the dockyard.
For Li’s family, however, the loss is deeply personal and almost impossible to comprehend.
His son, Jerome Li, recently graduated from college and told the New York Post that his father had spent years working grueling hours to provide for the family after immigrating to the United States from China roughly a decade ago in search of better opportunities.
According to the New York Post, Li would wake before dawn every day, often starting work at 4 a.m. and returning home exhausted late in the afternoon after long shifts performing physically demanding labor.
His wife would prepare his breakfast and pack his lunch each morning — part of a daily routine built around sacrifice and hard work.
The New York Post noted that Friday was supposed to mark the end of Li’s workweek before the family embarked on a planned weekend getaway, a rare opportunity for rest after years of labor and sacrifice.
Instead, the trip turned into unimaginable heartbreak.
Jerome told the New York Post that his mother was rushed to the shipyard after learning of the emergency and waited in agony for updates as firefighters searched for survivors. The family says they received little communication from company officials during the ordeal and are now pleading for transparency about exactly what happened.
The New York Post reported that Jerome believes his father understood the dangerous nature of shipyard work but trusted that proper safeguards were in place.
Now, the family wants to know whether enough precautions were taken to protect workers inside confined areas of the vessel.
Authorities have not yet announced the official cause of the explosion, and multiple agencies are investigating
