NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) —A family is in mourning after last week’s accident at a Norfolk shipyard.

Loved ones and friends have identified one of the victims as 55-year-old John Robinson, a fleet technician at Marine Hydraulics International. His family said he has worked on ships all over the world, but his life came to a tragic end at Marine Hydraulics International, with his family seeking answers and accountability. According to Titan, the parent company of MHI in Norfolk, John was a subcontractor, not an MHI employee.

“Better working conditions for our shipyard workers,” said Jasmine Robinson, John Robinson’s sister, adding, “this was a great man and he did not deserve to die this way.”

Details about what exactly happened are unclear.

On Oct. 23 emergency crews responded to MHI for a technical rescue, and while Jasmine believes there was an elevator malfunction, the company hasn’t confirmed that.

“The only thing I have is from the medical examiner,” Jasmine Robinson said. “It says blunt force trauma to the torso, extreme blunt force trauma to the torso.”

The uncertainty has her taking a closer look at shipyard safety practices. This shipyard received four citations in March 2021 on the USS Normandy. The first was due to improperly rigged equipment, in which a failed knot caused a load to fall, fracturing an employee’s foot. The second citation faulted the company for failing to assess worksite hazards, which also led to that injury, while a third citation revealed that workers were using an inadequate anchor point, exposing them to a nine-foot fall.

“We need better working conditions for our men and women at this shipyard,” Robinson said.

Jasmine’s hopeful that OSHA and the state Department of Labor and public affairs will do a thorough investigation.

“We have two families out here hurting due to negligence that couldve been avoided.”

The identity of the other worker has not been shared yet and the investigation into this incident is still ongoing.