Chile fish farm death toll 90 since 2013
At least 90 Chilean fish farm workers have died in various accidents over the past 13 years, according to a radical media outlet.
Ecoceanos.cl was commenting after the deaths of six men on board the catamaran support vessel Koñimó, which sank in the Los Lagos region of Chile last week. Two other men survived.
Chilean Navy at the accident site last week.
The boat, which was working under contract for the salmon farming company Salmones Australes, was 20 metres long and 10 metres wide, and sank to a depth of 40 metres.
Ecoceanos takes a strong stand and is frequently critical of the country’s salmon farming industry and its practices.
However, the figures it quotes are not in doubt. The year is only a month old but already eight people have died in fish fam incidents.
Ecoceanos says that Chile holds the world record for mortality in salmon farming, with 90 workers having died between 2013 and January 2026 due to what is claims are “substandard labour conditions”.
It says: “The season of deaths of workers linked to the salmon farming industry based in Chile continues, highlighting the sub-standard workplace safety conditions existing in this billion-dollar export sector, whose productive expansion has already claimed the lives of eight people during the first 28 days of 2026.
“These 90 deaths in just under 13 years represent the human toll of an accelerated production expansion model, which has come under scrutiny for its significant environmental and labour impacts.
“Each statistic signifies a life lost in farming centres, processing plants, or, as in this case, maritime transport.”
The Chilean marine authorities have launched an investigation into the tragedy.
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