‘Dancing with death': Why dismantling a ship is one of the world's most dangerous jobs

A new international agreement governing ship recycling yards, known as the Hong Kong Convention, is set to come into force next June and is aimed at cleaning up the industry, but critics maintain it is not enough

Labourers dwarfed by a ship at a ship-breaking plot in Gadani, Pakistan. Picture: Danial Shah/Getty

In March 1998 the 43,000-ton Oak Wave slid down a dry dock in Japan.

Over the next 25 years, the $30m bulk carrier — designed to haul grain and other commodities — called at ports across Asia and the Arabian Peninsula, ran through five owners and three names, and changed its flag twice.