Hunter ‘failed to follow rules’ in brutal terrain
‘‘Tragically, it appears that Mr Tornmarck ... died as a result of his failure to follow many of the basic safety rules of hunting or tramping in the New Zealand alpine environment.’’ Anna Tutton Deputy chief coroner
A Swedish hunter died because he failed to follow basic safety rules while exploring some of the most ‘‘brutal terrain in New Zealand, with holes, bivvys and rocks the size of houses’’.
Hans Christian Tornmarck had limited experience in New Zealand’s alpine environment, but went hunting alone in the Karangarua Valley in South Westland on May 12 without a personal locator beacon and did not fill in the hut intentions book.
Deputy chief coroner Anna Tutton, in findings released today, ruled that although Tornmarck’s body was never found, he died from a mishap in rugged terrain between May 13 and 22, 2017.
It was not known whether Tornmarck was unaware of the rules or chose to disregard them, she said.
‘‘Tragically, it appears that Mr Tornmarck ... died as a result of his failure to follow many of the basic safety rules of hunting or tramping in the New Zealand alpine environment.’’
The 27-year-old veterinarian from Askersundm, Sweden, had experience hunting and tramping in Sweden and on the East Coast of New Zealand, but had only been on one hunting trip on the West Coast before the one that turned fatal.
Searchers found his campsite at Regina Creek on May 20 in an extremely hazardous area. His pack and rifle were not found.
Snow hampered the searchers’ effort, and it was called off on May 24.
Police and Land Search and Rescue (SAR) conducted another unsuccessful search in January 2020 when Tornmarck’s mother, Anki Lindroos, and his sister, Jenny, travelled to New Zealand. Searchers built a rock cairn and placed a piece of granite that had been brought from Sweden by Tornmarck’s family near the campsite.
The coroner said Tornmarck was described as fit, calm and a ‘‘low risktaker’’.
However, a hunting associate said Tornmarck’s skillset was ‘‘entry level in terms of skills in an alpine environment’’, but ‘‘competent in general hunting skills and also in bushcraft’’.
Another hunter told police he met Tornmarck in the Cassel Flat Hut on May 12 and warned him against going into the Regina Creek area alone because it was a tough hike in challenging terrain.
Police described the Karangarua Valley as a vast and remote wilderness area popular with hunters of chamois or tahr.
It had large rivers that were prone to rising rapidly, extremely steep bluffs and gorges, dense bush, huge boulder fields and open alpine tops that attracted heavy snowfall and ice from May to October.
Sergeant Mark Kirkwood, the head of West Coast SAR, said the area was extremely hazardous, unforgiving and ‘‘some of the most brutal terrain in New Zealand, with holes, bivvys and rocks the size of houses’’.
Tornmarck’s family had no communication from him after he went missing and his bank accounts were untouched.
Two other tourists hunting tahr had been found dead in the same area in the last three years.
A Mountain Safety Council report for the coroner said of the nine hunting fatalities in the past 10 years, eight were caused by falls. It said Tornmarck had most likely slipped on wet, loose rock in the steep terrain.
DOC visitor safety manager Andy Roberts said the department would conduct a review of fatalities over the past five years and investigate how it could better alert international hunters to the hazards in New Zealand’s difficult and remote areas.
Tutton recommended all alpine hunters hunt in pairs, carry two-way communications devices, and take a cautious approach to the route they chose to take.