Epifanio (Epi) Hernandez

by Peter Haines

Local 500 Secretary-Treasurer

Epifanio (Epi) Hernandez died while walking out to relieve his partner on the rubber tire gantry crane at TSI-Vanterm at approximately 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 4. Hernandez was 63 and a half years old.

His body was found by his co-worker Satvinder Sandhu. He had been run over by a large piece of machinery. There are no eye-witnesses to the fatality.

Hernandez was born July 12, 1942 in San Pablo City, Laguna, Philippines. He was orphaned as a young child. As a young man he trained to be a skilled heavy duty mechanic. He worked in Vietnam from 1966 to 1972 for Alaska Barge and Transport.

He found work as a mechanic at Cullens Detroit Diesel during the 1980s, and then as a Vancouver logshore mechanic from 1987 to now. He was instrumental in securing the maintenance work on the bombcarts for ILWU Canada’s longshore Local 500 at Vanterm because of his background with Cullens Detroit Diesel.

There is an ongoing investigation into the fatality by Labour Canada. There is now a no-walk zone in the container yard at Vanterm.

Hernandez is survived by his wife Perla and his son Grover and daughter Dorothy. At the funeral mass at Our Lady of Sorrows Parish, Hernandez’s passing was honored by hundreds of his family, friends, co-workers and executives from TSI-Vanterm.

More information is at his son’s website: www.groverhernandez.com/epi