TACOMA, Wash. -- A 40-year-old Tacoma area longshorewoman died Saturday at the Port of Tacoma when she was crushed by a four-ton shipping container that fell from a ship.

Tacoma police say a crane knocked the empty container from a ship it was unloading.

Police spokesman Tracy Conaway says for some reason, the crane picked up a larger amount of containers than usual and that knocked the empty container off the ship.

The woman was walking to a break with several co-workers when the container began falling. They yelled a warning, but the woman was unable to get out of the way.

Police say the 2:30 p.m. death was accidental.

The victim was a member of Local 23 of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union. Her identity was not immediately released.