KEY POINTS:
Investigators will consider whether to lay criminal charges against the owners of a Waikato coolstore which exploded in April killing senior station officer Derek Lovell and seriously injuring seven of his colleagues.
A Department of Labour spokeswoman said the primary goal of its investigation into the April 5 tragedy was to determine what had happened and to ensure steps were taken to avoid this in the future.
"But as a part of that we also identify if there have been any breaches (of the Health and Safety Act) and then we look to see if it's relevant to prosecute."
Yesterday, Fire Services released its report after a near five-month inquiry into the fatal explosion and blaze at Tamahere.
The 155-page report said it was not clear whether the coolstore had fully complied with requirements to manage and use flammable refrigerants.
It said Mr Lovell's Red Watch crew responded to the callout without knowing Hychill Minus 50, which is 95 per cent propane, was used there as a refrigerant.
The facility did not display any hazardous substances warning signs nor did it have a gas stenching agent to warn firefighters of the leak.
Its multi-gas detector was away for servicing and there were no compliant fire detection or protection systems or hydrants [and] very limited firefighting water.
However Hychill said all its refrigerant products were odourised and could be smelt at levels far below a flammable concentration.
Hychill Australia Managing Director John Clark said: "There is no doubt that the refrigerant that was in use at Icepak was odourised when it was put into the refrigeration system."
Mr Clark said Hychill was concerned firefighters could not detect the odour and would like to establish why that was the case.
Fire Services chief executive Mike Hall said the months since the tragedy had been a "very emotional time" for staff, but there was relief among firefighters who were cleared of any blame for the explosion.
"I don't think anger is perhaps the right word, frustration, maybe, that the circumstances occurred as they did," he said.
He admitted hazardous substances legislation was unclear.
"The law applying to a gas enclosed within a refrigeration system appears to come under at least two different regulations, and maybe a third, and there is argument under those regulations as well," he said.
And other legislation needed to be updated to reflect the reality that urban fire crews often responded to rural fires, despite Tamahere being just 12km from central Hamilton.
The report found firefighters followed operational instructions but said "ideally" fire crews should have visited the facility as part of their risk planning process.
Icepak managing director Wayne Grattan did not return Herald phone calls yesterday but in a prepared statement said his company had "at all times" complied with its regulatory commitments.
He said safety matters were always treated with "the utmost seriousness and care" but some regulations were difficult to understand.
The company had thought it had complied, but later realised it didn't have a location test certificate required under Hazardous Goods and New Organisms legislation, which is to certify plants with more than 100kg of flammable gas.
The Tamahere plant had about 400kg of Hychill Minus 50.
"As the inquiry has confirmed, aspects of this regulatory environment are complex," said Mr Grattan.
Labour and Environment Minister Trevor Mallard said the Department of Labour and the Environmental Risk Management Authority were working through the Fire Service investigation's findings.
LIFE SAVERS
Any of these nine factors would have prevented Mr Lovell's death, according to the Fire Services report.
1) Applying hazardous substances regulations at the installation.
2) Prior notification to the Fire Service that there were hazardous substances at the premises.
3) Receipt of an application for approval of an evacuation scheme.
4) A familiarisation visit by local Fire Service staff.
5) Fire Service awareness of the large-scale use of flammable refrigerants in New Zealand.
6) Warning signs at the coolstore.
7) Adding a smell to the refrigerant gas, so firefighters would know of its presence.
8) Gas detectors to warn fire crews.
9) The fire crews using a portable gas detector.
- NZPA
