Mayor visits Massey family in wake of toddler tragedy

Linda Cooper said the death of Deanna Robertson brought back memories of Aisling Symes, who died last year. Photo / Richard Robinson

The death of a 15-month-old girl, crushed under a falling brick wall in the west Auckland suburb of Massey yesterday, is a warning to all about the risks of old structures, says the local council.

Floral tributes now mark the spot where Deanna Jane Robertson died yesterday. She was playing near the wall when it gave way, crushing her to death.

She had been visiting her aunt and uncle when the wall collapsed, apparently of its own accord.

Attempts by relatives to revive her were unsuccessful.

Waitakere Mayor Bob Harvey visited her parents Edwin and Sarah Robertson - who are expecting their second baby in a month - this morning.

Mr Harvey told media that many properties had walls similar to the one which had collapsed, and urged people to take steps to make sure another tragedy of this kind could not happen again.

Earlier, Massey ward councillor Linda Cooper told Newstalk ZB the tragedy brought back memories of local toddler Aisling Symes, whose lifeless body was found in a drain near her deceased grandparents' home in Henderson.

"Freak" accident

Ms Cooper told NZPA that council engineers had inspected the wall and would be writing a report for police.

"Our sympathies are with the family as part of our community.

"It's a tragedy and my heart goes out to the parents. It's a dreadful thing to lose a child, especially in a freak accident such as this.

"Probably all of us take for granted structures around our home. We've had extensively dry weather and bricks have been drying out, so it might pay to have a spot check of things around the home every now and then.

"It's nobody's fault. It's just an unfortunate accident," Ms Cooper said.

Waitakere City Council spokesman Glyn Walters said it was an old wall and the recent hot weather might have caused the mortar holding it together to dry out.

Meanwhile, bricklayer Ron Bush told Newstalk ZB that by all accounts, the accident was "freakish" but that it paid to check brick structures.

He said it took 50-60 years for mortar to become brittle enough to cause a collapse.

The rubble has yet to be removed from the scene.

The Labour Department was also called in to investigate but has now pulled back, having confirmed the accident was not at a place of work.

- NZ HERALD ONLINE, NEWSTALK ZB, NZPA