SUBIC BAY FREEPORT – A worker at the shipyard of the Korean firm Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Philippines Inc. here was reportedly electrocuted while working at its motor pool on Tuesday, reports reaching here said.

But there were conflicting reports on the cause of death of Efren de la Cruz, 24, a machine operator, of Bataan.

Pyeong Jung Yu, Hanjin general manager, confirmed that De la Cruz died while working but said he died after a heart attack.

“[It’s] because of his personal problems, his personal disease. He was not involved in any accident. He suddenly collapsed,” he said.

De la Cruz, hired by Hanjin subcontractor Unicorn T Corp., was taken to the San Marcelino Hospital but was declared dead on arrival.

Doctors told the victim’s family that there were signs of electrocution.

De la Cruz was the 15th worker reported to have died while working at the Hanjin shipyard. On Aug. 7, Arvy Mahinay, 19, who was employed by Hanjin subcontractor Bodahh Inc., died when he fell from a roof while retrieving his helmet that was blown off by the wind.

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) said Mahinay’s death could be attributed to “human error” and not related to the non-compliance of the Korean shipyard with safety standards.

Yu said they did not report De la Cruz’s death immediately to the SBMA or Department of Labor and Employment because he did not die in an accident.

“But somehow they knew about it. The SBMA came to Hanjin on Tuesday,” he said.

He said the SBMA looked into the incident but “they could not find anything wrong about Hanjin or its subcontractor, and the way he [De la Cruz] was working.”

SBMA Administrator Armand Arreza said their initial investigation showed that two of five workers at the motor pool were not wearing safety shoes.

He said they are waiting for the results of the medical examination to establish the cause of De la Cruz’s death.

“It is also possible that electrocution caused cardiac arrest,” he said.

De la Cruz’s relatives said they did not know if the victim had a history of cardiovascular disease.