Staten Island Shipyard Worker Killed, More Than Two Dozen FDNY Injured in May Ship Repair Explosion
FDNY says ignited paint vapors in a confined space triggered the May 22 blast at May Ship Repair in Mariners Harbor that killed worker Xiaoyuan Li and injured more than two dozen firefighters and EMS during the response.
By 411 Press Newsroom2 min read
Correction (July 27, 2026): An earlier version described Xiaoyuan Li as a roughly four-year employee of the shipyard and said Li was survived by one child. Per the FDNY-based reporting cited here, Li was a subcontractor who had worked with the yard on multiple projects and was survived by two children. A disputed age — reported as 56 by some outlets and 57 by others — has been removed.
A fire and explosions tore through the May Ship Repair shipyard in Mariners Harbor, Staten Island, on May 22, 2026, killing a worker and injuring more than two dozen FDNY firefighters and EMS personnel who responded to the scene. FDNY investigators have concluded that ignited paint vapors in a confined space triggered the blast.
The worker killed was Xiaoyuan Li, a subcontractor who had worked with the yard on multiple projects. Li had emigrated from China, lived in Flushing, Queens, and is survived by a husband and two children.
The response
FDNY dispatch received calls at about 3:30 p.m. reporting a fire in the rear of the yard and workers trapped near the dock. Firefighters and EMS arrived to find an active fire and began search and rescue operations.
A major secondary explosion occurred during the response, injuring more than two dozen of the responders, several of them seriously.
What FDNY found
FDNY investigators concluded that paint vapors accumulated in a confined space and ignited, triggering the explosion. Confined-space vapor ignition is a recurring industrial hazard in shipyard work, where coatings, solvents, and tank work routinely produce flammable atmospheres that require ventilation, atmospheric monitoring, and ignition-source control.
What we're watching
- Any OSHA inspection opened in connection with the fatality
- The condition of the seriously injured firefighters
- Whether the FDNY findings lead to further federal review of ship-repair confined-space practices
We'll publish more as the investigation develops.
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