Three companies have been sentenced after separate incidents involving a worker being killed and another suffering serious injury while near around powerlines.
The sentencing of Coogan Contracting in Taumarunui, and Church Bay Services Limited and Joan Carpenters Limited in Auckland has prompted a warning from WorkSafe about safely working near powerlines.
The most serious case took place when 25-year-old Irish national Sean Clear was electrocuted while working on a farm near Whakapapa Village in February last year.
His mower had become bogged down, and a digger was brought in to pull it out. The vehicle contacted an overhead powerline carrying 33,000 volts.
As Clear steadied the mower for extraction, electricity passed through the digger’s arm into him. He died as a result of the shock.
An investigation by WorkSafe found Clear’s employer — Coogan Contracting — failed to carry out a risk assessment to identify the powerlines as a hazard. There was also no spotter to ensure the powerlines weren’t contacted.
Coogan Contracting was sentenced at the Taumarunui District Court yesterday, and ordered to pay $100,000 in reparations. Its fine was reduced to $25,000 due to financial capacity.
The other incident took place just three months after Clear’s death in May 2023, when 31-year-old Emmet Holmes-O’Connor was working on Auckland’s Waiheke Island.
He was working on scaffolding that had been installed too close to powerlines.
When the aluminium cladding he was working with touched the 11kV line, Holmes-O’Connor suffered an electric shock that caused him to fall backwards nearly four metres off the scaffolding.
He received “major burns” to his hands and foot, as well as fractures to his spine and ribs.
A WorkSafe investigation found no close approach consent for the work, which was required when working near overhead powerlines. There was also no proper risk assessment undertaken of the dangers.
The two companies were charged with health and safety failures and sentenced at the Auckland District Court on December 12.
The employer Joan Carpenters Limited was fined $16,500, and scaffolding company Church Bay Services Limited was fined $13,500. The two companies split the $42,818 in reparations.
WorkSafe area investigation manager Danielle Henry described the cases as a “horrific reminder of just how dangerous it can be when businesses do not take enough care with working around power lines”.
“Businesses must manage their risks, and where they don’t, we will take action,” she said.
Henry said anyone working around electricity and high-voltage lines must be aware of the mandated requirements for working near them.
“The local lines company may require a close approach consent application to ensure the work is conducted safely. Do not start work before you check for consent.”
Information on working with or near powerlines can be found on WorkSafe’s website.
