THE SCANDAL OVER PORT DEATHS GROWS DEEPER: WHAT'S BEHIND THE REED-HOSKINS-CAMPIRANO TRIANGLE?

By Juan Montoya

As details of the handling of a fatality on Port of Brownsville property while under the employ of the largest stevedore company leasing from the Brownsville Navigation District emerge, it is becoming increasingly clear that the latest death is making port and board members nervous.

During the most recent meeting Wednesday, board chairman John Reed refused to speak with a Spanish-language television crew regarding the death the previous Thursday of a Mexican national who died when he was crushed by a heavy I-beam that slipped off a heavy-duty forklift.

It was later revealed that the operator of the forklift was not certified to operate the machine and that although he was employed by Gulfstream Marine, the port's largest stevedore, the tragedy had occurred on Brownsville Navigation District property.

To make matters worse, this is the second fatality in less than two years at that company and port workers say that it is about the fifth in the last few years there.

Questions on the safety record of the company to the port's public information office were answered with a reply that reporter should direct the questions at the company, not at the port.

"You should direct any questions of the certification of the operator or the company's safety record to Gulfstream Marine," a public information officer emailed in response to queries.

However, many are asking whether the track record accumulated by Gulfstream should not be a source of concern to the BND's board. Now, with the accident occurring on port property, these questions are getting louder.

A local representative of the Mexican consulate's office told a Spanish-language station recently that the accumulating number of Mexican national deaths under the employ of the company should merit a rigorous investigation of its operations and safety protocols.

Initially, the port indicated that the Cameron County Sheriff's Department would take over the investigation, but just a day later, investigators there said the case would be turned over back to the port's police.

"How's it going to look that the port is investigating itself?" asked an incredulous worker there. "It is in their interest not to muddy the water and make trouble for the company."

Adding to the list of potentially embarrassing questions is the close personal relationship between the BND's board Chairman John Reed and Gulfstream's vice-president for operations Mark Hoskins.

"They're brothers-in-law," said a port administration staffer.

When television reporter sought to corner Reed at the Wednesday meeting, he said he'd speak to them over the telephone later, and sent the port's information officer to run interference for him. Reporters said Reed directed them to the spokesman when they contacted him on his cell phone.

Now workers and others are wondering whether that close relationship has tied the hands of port director Eddie Campirano to launch a thorough investigation of the mounting body count at the company.

"If the boss at the biggest stevedore company at the port and the chairman of the board don't want to make waves over this latest incident, do you think Eddie is going to go against them?" asked the port employee. "That's not the way things work."