Orchardist faces three charges

Emergency services at the Twyford Rd orchard after the fatal crash in December 2013. Photo / FIle

An orchard owner is facing charges for failing to keep a worker safe, after a teenager was killed falling from a homemade four-wheel-drive.

Ira Gannaway-Gardner, 17, died after he fell from a vehicle on the Twyford Rd orchard in December 2013. He was supposed to attend his school prizegiving the next day. Instead his classmates farewelled him with a haka.

Tributes to the Napier Boys' High School student, at the time of his death, described him as an ambitious high achiever.

He was working at the orchard to save money toward university studies the following year. It is understood Ira was alone on the vehicle when he came off. He was seen going through trees.

Owner and operator of the orchard, Hamish Gregory Campbell was charged with three offences under the Health and Safety in Employment Act, a Worksafe NZ spokesman said.

It is alleged he failed to take "all practicable steps" to ensure the safety of an employee at work.

He has also been charged with failing to implement methods to identify existing hazards to employees.

The third charge alleges that Campbell did not take "practicable steps" to reduce the likelihood that the plant would cause harm to any person.

Mr Campbell was expected to appear in Napier District Court later this month.

Police and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment also investigated the incident.

Ira's family declined to comment on Mr Campbell's charges when contacted by Hawke's Bay Today last night.

The charges come after a Hawke's Bay company was ordered to pay more than $33,000 in February, following an incident in which one of its employees was overcome by toxic fumes and found unresponsive at the bottom of a silo.

Waterproofing company Gunac Hawke's Bay Limited was fined $33,750 and ordered to pay $2500 in reparation after a worker was taken to hospital with carbon monoxide poisoning in April 2014.

A Hastings engineering firm was also ordered to pay fines and compensation of $130,000 last year, for failing to take all reasonable steps to protect the safety of worker killed on a downtown Napier construction site.

Patton Engineering was charged by Worksafe NZ in an investigation following the death of Jeff McCulloch, 52, of Hastings, after he was struck by a steel beam while working on the old Farmers site redevelopment in May 2013.