Safety Institute of Australia needs to take responsibility for Coroner's ignorance

It totally disgusts me that a hugely profitable organisation such as Seahaven resorts gets away with manslaughter of a teenage girly with no one facing charges and a pathetic fine of $7500 being the only penalty!

The Safety Institute of Australia should take responsibility in failing to educate the coroners of this country in accepted practice and law but then if they are uneducated how can they educate the coroner's, things need to change at the SIA to remove all unqualified people from membership, fellowship and chartered fellowship immediately for Safety to be recognised as a profession and people to listen.

As an example the coroner called for Australian Standards to be adhered to! Well if he had any knowledge then he would understand that the Standards are a minimum and when our legislation calls for risks to be mitigated, it is practical when there is already documented evidence on how to do this and the coroner ignores this as a non compliance with the OHS legislation (in this case the WHS Legislation).

What makes this even more hypocritical is experience, the last prosecution I saw was a farmer that had run over his 7 year old and splattered her over the paddock, it's not enough that the farmer was suffering enough but the prosecutors are directed to prosecute so it becomes public knowledge but when it comes to a rich organisation such as Seahaven this approach is totally ignored. Something totally stinks in this case.


No blame in spa death - coroner

By Suzanne Klotz

December 18, 2006 11:43am
Article from: AAP

A CORONER has found no one should face charges over the death of a teenage girl after her hair became entangled in spa pump at a resort on Queensland's Sunshine Coast.

But deputy Queensland coroner Ray Rinaudo made a series of recommendations to try to prevent a repeat of the tragedy.

Amanda Helen Boyce, 13, was on holiday with the family of a school friend at the Seahaven Resort at Noosa Heads when the accident happened in December 2001.

An inquest in Brisbane Magistrates Court was told Amanda and two friends were using the resort's spa.

Amanda, who had waist-length hair, put her head under water and got it tangled in pipes at the base of the spa.

Despite the efforts of many people, including a doctor and lifesavers, she was unerwater for up to 20 minutes and never regained consciousness.

Her life support was turned off in Brisbane Royal Children's Hospital four days later.

A senior principal adviser with the Department of Workplace Health and Safety found the accident occurred because of a combination of design and operational deficiencies with the spa.

Seahaven Resorts has already pleaded guilty to breaching workplace health and safety regulations and been fined $7,500.

Today, handing down his findings in the case, Mr Rinaudo found that no one should stand trial over the death.

However he made a number of recommendations to ensure public spa pools were safer.

These included that they comply with the relevant Australian standard, that public spa pool owners control the suction pipe flow velocity, fit a pressure gauge to the pump suction, and fit emergency spa pool pump stops and alarms.

What a pathetic coroner (or corrupt) that investigated this case! If they had knowledge of the legislation they would realise that the standard gives a clear example of mitigating this risk which is what the overidding Act calls for yet the coroner has ignored their is even a Act!

Regards
Daniel