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Coroner rules Irishman who died on New Zealand farm should have been saved
Sean Clear, who was originally from Ballacolla, Co Laois, was a mechanic by trade and had been working on machinery when he died just days away from his 25th birthday
An Irish farm worker who died after he was electrocuted while working on a farm in New Zealand could have been saved by 'simple, no-cost steps,' it has been revealed.
A coroner has issued urgent safety recommendations after 24-year-old Sean Clear died while working on a the North Island farm in 2023.
Clear, who was originally from Ballacolla, Co Laois, was a mechanic by trade and had been working on machinery when he died just days away from his 25th birthday on February 17.
The coroner ruled that the a death of the Irish seasonal worker could have been prevented 'if simple steps had been taken'.
Sean Clear
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Coroner Mark Wilton said Sean's death had left his family in 'disbelief' as they were 'particularly pained that if simple steps had been taken the tragedy could have been averted'.
According to the coroner's report, Clear, who arrived in New Zealand in October 2022 for harvesting work, was killed on February 17, 2023 at Taurewa Station near Tongariro.
WorkSafe, New Zealand's workplace health and safety regulator, released a statement following his death, detailing how Clear's mower became bogged down while he was working on a farm near Whakapapa Village.
A digger was brought in to extract the mower contacted an overhead line carrying electricity at 33,000 volts.
'As Mr Clear was steadying the mower for extraction, the electricity passed through the digger's arm and into the 25-year-old Irish national, causing his death,' the statement reads.
An investigation by WorkSafe found the employer failed to carry out a risk assessment to identify the overhead power lines as a hazard. It also said it had failed to have a spotter in place to ensure the lines were not contacted.
Despite immediate CPR and emergency services' efforts, Clear died at the scene.
Coroner Wilton confirmed the cause of death as electrocution due to a workplace accident, exacerbated by aspiration of stomach contents, according to the Waikato Times.
Sean Clear died after being electrocuted, a death Coroner Mark Wilton, added, could have been prevented by 'simple, no-cost steps'.
The coroner found that Coogan Contracting, Clear's employer, failed to identify the power lines as a hazard and did not communicate the risks to employees—failings that directly led to the fatality.
The company was sentenced at Taumarunui District Court on December 18 and ordered to pay $100,000 in reparations and fined $25,000 after admitting charges under the Health and Safety at Work Act.
'I accept the opinion of WorkSafe that the overhead powerlines at the Taurewa Station work site were a risk that should have been clearly identified by Coogan's,' Coroner Wilton said.
'I also accept that the failure to identify and mitigate that risk resulted in Mr Clear's death.'
Coroner Wilton endorsed a suite of WorkSafe resources and a recent safety alert urging rural operators to "look out, look up" and keep a minimum four-metre clearance from live lines.
The coroner also echoed an earlier call by another coroner to review WorkSafe's agricultural powerline guidance.
'This tragic event highlights how everyday risks in farming can become deadly if basic safety protocols are ignored,' he said.
'Simple, no-cost steps could have saved a life.'
Clear's family expressed disbelief at the circumstances, stating that the accident was avoidable had proper precautions been taken.
In a tribute to Clear in the wake of his death, Clough-Ballacolla Gaelic Athletic Association chairman Gordon Pearson told how the community had been 'heartbroken' by the young man's death.
'He was such a nice chap. He had a word for everybody, Pearson said at the time. 'They are a lovely family. It is terrible. It was a freak accident.'
Coroner Wilton extended sincere condolences to them, noting the 'profound grief' caused by the loss.
