The Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service also confirmed it had attended the scene.
A spokesperson for NEAS said: “We were called to an incident in which a person was injured at the Port of Tyne, South Shields, at 13:02.
“We dispatched three double crewed ambulances, two clinical team leaders, a duty officer, three vehicles from our Hazardous Area Response Team (HART) and were supported by Great North Air Ambulance Service.”
They said a HART vehicle remained at the scene “on standby to support the fire service”.
Mike from Urbex Drone View, who arrived after the incident had happened, said he had gone to the dock to take footage and was “met with the tangled wreckage of the dockside crane, highlighting the sheer force of the incident”.
“Behind a line of emergency service vehicles, I could also see that several cargo containers aboard the BG Orange had been dislodged from their original positions,” he said.
He said he felt the “extent of the damage” showed it was a “serious incident”.
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