Rotorua firm Lakeland Steel fined after traumatic workplace accident on teen’s birthday

Harrison Gilbert was meant to finish work and enjoy a roast pork dinner with his family to celebrate his 17th birthday.

Instead, he was knocked unconscious and badly injured at work after he was struck in the face by an untethered steel beam being moved by an uncertified crane and an operator without the right qualifications to use it.

The traumatic accident has changed his life.

The steel beam that was manoeuvred by the mobile T-lift crane at Lakeland Steel.

Now Rotorua business Lakeland Steel has been fined $234,000 for its failures on October 3, 2022. It has also been ordered to pay Gilbert $50,000 in emotional harm reparation.

Gilbert needed 100 facial stitches and suffered a broken eye socket, broken nose, several smashed or lost teeth, and skull fractures. He needed facial reconstruction surgery and will need more medical procedures in the future.

The case came before Judge Greg Hollister-Jones for sentencing in the Rotorua District Court on Thursday after WorkSafe charged steel fabrication business Lakeland Steel under the Health and Safety at Work Act with exposing a worker to risk of serious injury or death.

Gilbert was employed by a company that provided labour to Lakeland Steel and had been at the Davies St business for three weeks.

The crane driver, David Cameron, was a sole trader contracted to Lakeland Steel. He did not have the correct qualifications to operate Lakeland Steel’s T-lift mobile crane.

Cameron was bringing steel into the yard and using Gilbert as a “spotter”. Gilbert was also physically guiding the steel beam, which did not have any tag lines in place to stop it from swinging.

A WorkSafe investigation found Gilbert was walking backwards guiding the crane driver in the direction of the crane’s travel, which Judge Hollister-Jones said was banned under the company’s risk register.

Judge Hollister-Jones said Gilbert tripped and fell backwards “violently” and came to rest with his back against a stack. He was then struck in the face by the steel beam carried by the crane.

Lakeland Steel in Rotorua. Photo / Google Maps

“The incident was serious with [him] losing a lot of blood and he was lapsing in and out of consciousness.”

Lakeland Steel admitted three main failures: the crane was not certified, the staff and Gilbert were not properly trained for that task, and there were several issues with the load, including missing tag lines.

Lakeland Steel had no previous health and safety breaches and directors of the company had a restorative justice meeting with Gilbert and his family to apologise.

‘Smashed in like a crushed tomato’

Victim impact statements were read to the court on behalf of Gilbert and his parents.

Gilbert described his ongoing health issues, including losing his sense of smell, getting sick often and interrupted sleep because of breathing difficulties. He said he now felt like he was breathing through the head of a pin. .

He said his parents were burdened with dental costs, including $1200 for a recent root canal procedure.

He now has braces and has appointments in Tauranga that not only cost money but meant he could not go to work.

Gilbert said he had to come to terms with how he looked following the accident.

“When I first saw myself, I was in shock … why did this happen to me?”

His parents' statements detailed the shock they felt when they first saw him.

His father, Shane, who was called to the site shortly after the accident, recalled his horror seeing his son’s face “smashed in like a crushed tomato”.

“I paused for a moment. How do I tell my wife … I thought he was dead.”

He said his son was in and out of consciousness. The teenager’s mother was at home preparing the cake for his 17th birthday party.

The charge carried a maximum fine of $1.5 million.

Judge Hollister-Jones gave Lakeland Steel a total of 45% discounts in sentencing, including 25% for a guilty plea and 5% each for a previous good record, remorse, reparation, and co-operation with WorkSafe, arriving at an end fine of $234,000.

He awarded costs of $2448 and a consequential loss payment of $4131 to Gilbert.

Lakeland Steel was represented in court by company directors, James MacPhee and Cory Leatherland, and lawyer Sophie Curlett. Angus Everett appeared for WorkSafe.

WorkSafe said in a statement after the sentencing the crane had been repurposed by the business but became a “weapon that changed the life of a teenage contractor”.

The mobile T-lift crane involved in the incident at Lakeland Steel. Photo / Supplied

WorkSafe’s area investigation manager Paul West said its investigation found the crane appeared to have originally been a log skidder bought by the company in the 1970s and modified into a crane. It was inherited by the current owners, who had not maintained it.

West said Gilbert had not been trained to work around the crane, and his attention was divided between tasks when he was hit.

“This young worker was traumatically let down through no fault of his own. Simply put, the crane should not have been operational,” West said.

He said businesses must manage risks, including keeping maintaining equipment, especially older equipment.

Crane Association chief executive Sarah Toase said in WorkSafe’s statement the incident highlighted the importance of using taglines or tethers.

Correction

Details of costs awarded have been corrected.

Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for more than 25 years, covering mainly police, court, human interest and social issues.