Coroner calls for tougher safety standards after forestry worker crushed under falling tree

A coroner is calling on Worksafe to look at strengthening safety regulations in the forestry sector, after a 39-year-old father of two was crushed to death by a falling tree.Mykhailo Tremel was working on a forestry block in Clevedon, south of Auckland, in June 2022, when he radioed fellow workers for help.They found Tremel down a steep bank, lying on the ground injured, with his chainsaw still running. He was initially conscious, but deteriorated.The two workers administered CPR and called emergency services, but Tremel was pronounced dead at the scene.The tree had crushed his chest and abdomen, and he had significant internal injuries.Worksafe prosecuted Turoa Logging Limited - who had hired Tremmel - and Pulley Contracting Limited - who was managing the harvesting.After pleading guilty in the Manukau District Court, they were fined and ordered to pay reparations totalling more than $300,000.In her finding, released to the public on Monday, coroner Rachael Schmidt-McCleave said Tremel was originally from Ukraine and arrived in New Zealand in 2016.She said, had a logging machine been used, Tremel's death would likely have been prevented."I further find that better observation techniques, call-in procedures and emergency response procedures would have (on the balance of probabilities) improved the chances of Mr Tremel having a favourable outcome after the accident."Coroner Schmidt-McCleave received expert advice from health and safety expert Michael Cosman.Cosman told the coroner research showed people who felled trees without a machine were 300 times more likely to die at work than others in the New Zealand workforce.He said, as more machines were used to cut down trees, the number of deaths in the industry had steadily declined.The coroner said advice from the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE), as well as WorkSafe, suggested regulatory work on forestry had been on hold since 2022.There were plans to include provisions in the Health and Safety at Work Amendment Act, which would have applied to the forestry sector, Coroner Schmidt-McCleave said."Cabinet agreed in May 2021 to make the regulations and drafting began, but this was paused in later 2022," she said in her finding.While there was an approved code of practice (ACOP), these were not mandatory.The coroner referred to a 2021 coronial finding into the death of another forestry worker, which encouraged MBIE to prioritise "regulatory frameworks"."Decisions about the content and relative priority of that programme, including whether particular regulatory work should be pursued or prioritised, are for the minister, with MBIE providing advice," Schmidt-McCleave said.The coroner recommended WorkSafe review the current code of practice to make it clear that no wind-damaged trees should be cut down manually.She also recommended WorkSafe consult and consider whether an observer be required to help with decision-making, look out for loose branches and to give medical help in an emergency.The coroner noted that, while Tremel had an 'observer', they were operating an excavator and couldn't see Tremel.Schmidt-McCleave recommended a triage trauma kit be within easy reach of the work area, crew members be trained in first aid and a site-specific emergency plan be prepared, which included determining the nearest point for a helicopter to land.