Dad’s tumour linked to boy’s death

A father’s brain tumour may have contributed to an accident in which his 9-year-old son drowned, a coroner has found.

But coroner Richard McElrea also called for WorkSafe New Zealand to ensure the alluvial goldmining industry, particularly smaller operations, complied with health and safety codes.

Tayne Luca Bowes died in August 2012 when the vehicle he was in rolled into a sludge pond at a goldmine near Hokitika.

His sister, Keira, 8, was trapped in the vehicle for 80 minutes until she was rescued by police, who believed the children had both drowned.

On the evening of August 12, police were alerted to a fatal car accident on private land at Ruatapu, about 7 kilometres inland from Hokitika.

Tayne’s father, Mark Bowes, was driving the Toyota SUV when it went into the pond.

Tayne and Keira were trapped in the vehicle, and Bowes ran ‘‘some distance’’ to raise the alarm.

Police arrived at the scene shortly after 7pm and believed there was little hope of either child being alive. About an hour later Keira was pulled out of the vehicle. She had hypothermia.

Bowes had arrived at the mine site in darkness to start a diesel-powered pump. He then started driving back to the mine entrance but noticed a leaking pipe joint. In turning around to go back to fix the leak, he lost control of the vehicle on a steep, short bank and it rolled into the water.

Four days after the accident a medical check noted Bowes was having trouble with his memory.

A scan showed a malignant brain tumour in his right temporal lobe.

Expert opinion provided to the police suggested the tumour ‘‘would quite likely have an impact on the driver and could be an explanation for the crash’’.

Though police took 80 minutes to rescue Keira, the coroner commended the officers who worked in ‘‘very difficult circumstances’’.

‘‘The undoubted hindsight lesson is that when all appears to be lost, it may not in fact be the case,’’ the coroner said. The event highlighted the importance of health and safety compliance, he said.

A perimeter bunding would probably have prevented the vehicle leaving the access track. There was also inadequate lighting at the site. The coroner recommended to WorkSafe NZ that vehicles have supplementary lighting when operating in environments like the accident scene.