The worker killed in the NYC shipyard explosion was trapped in the belly of the boat, family said

The man killed in an explosion at a Staten Island shipyard was a hard-working Chinese immigrant who died when he became “trapped” in the belly of a boat while painting, his family said Saturday.

Xiaoyuan Li, of Flushing, was finishing his last day of May’s ship repair work at a dry dock in Mariners Harbor before a planned weekend trip with his wife, son Jerome Li told The Post.

“My mother called me and said that my father’s co-worker called the police and said that my father was trapped inside the boat,” said Li from his home in Queens.

“And 45 minutes later there was an explosion.”

The Friday afternoon explosion left 30 people injured, including two firefighters, one of whom is in critical condition, officials said. The cause was under investigation.

After the fire broke out, his colleagues, 57, took his mother, Jinhua, 53, to a dry dock, but the situation is dire, said Jerome, who rushed to the scene via Uber.

The manager told the family that they should “wait for the report and see what happens.”

“My mother was in despair, crying,” said the sad 22-year-old, who recently graduated from college.

“I was scared,” he said. “I thought there might be hope, when I arrived they said no one has died but my father has not been found, I feel bad, I try not to cry.”

His father left Yanbian, a Korean Autonomous Prefecture in China that borders North Korea, about 10 years ago, his son said, to find a better life for their family.

He had worked for four years in a ship repair company.

My father started his day at 4 a.m., often not getting home until 5 p.m. His wife started his days with him, making him a tofu breakfast and packing him lunch, their son said.

“He works hard and takes care of the family,” said the son. “He works early in the morning and it’s hard work at the shipyard. Every day he’s really tired when he comes home.”

And his father knew the job was dangerous, he said.

“He’s the only boy down there who works in the basement,” said the son. “There has to be protection.”

The family said no one from May Ship Repair has reached out to them.

“My mother wants to know why this happened,” she said.

“It’s a sad time,” said the son, who graduated with a degree in photography.

“I just finished my studies two days ago, it’s a new chapter in my life. It was the last day of work, my parents are going on a trip.”