Ian McLarnon of Pukenui was killed when a 500kg ride-on lawnmower fell on him. Photo / 123rf
A man who enjoyed being in his shed, fixing his own machinery, was working on his ride-on lawnmower when tragedy struck.
Ian George McLarnon, 75, had lifted the rear of the half-tonne machine with a forklift so he could slide under it to work on the drive belt.
At some point, the mower slipped off the forklift tongs and fell on him, fatally pinning him down.
According to findings issued today by Coroner Rachael Schmidt-McCleave, the victim of the tragic event lived in Pukenui, Northland, with his wife Gail.
He enjoyed fixing his own machinery, including his muscle cars.
On August 27, 2022, Ian was working on the lawnmower on a concrete pad outside a shed at their property.
About 1pm, Gail brought lunch out to him and then returned inside.
About an hour later, she returned to collect his empty plate and was sure she heard him tinkering about in the shed.
By 6pm, Gail realised her husband hadn’t come back inside, so she went out to see where he was.
She found him unresponsive under the mower.
Gail called their son, who lived at a neighbouring property, and phoned emergency services.
Gail and their son tried to lift the mower off Ian but were unsuccessful.
Paramedics attended and Ian was declared dead.
It took a fire crew to lift the mower off him.
Now, the coroner has said Ian’s death was entirely preventable.
“It is a feature of New Zealand’s DIY culture that many people like to tinker on machinery and vehicles in their own homes,” Coroner Schmidt-McCleave said in her findings.
“The risks of doing so are great if proper methods are not followed.”
The coroner said the method Ian used to elevate the mower so he could work on the drive belt was inadequate to safely support and immobilise the movement of the mower while he worked beneath it.
That, combined with the effect of steel on steel, caused the mower to slide backwards off the forklift tongs.
Police determined he had used a small forklift to lift the mower about 30cm off the ground.
It appeared one of the forklift tongs had been initially placed just in front of the rear axle, and the other just behind the front jockey wheels of the mower.
That left the bulk of the lawnmower’s weight sitting outside the confines of the 1500kg forklift, effectively pivoting on the left tong.
Police noted that the seat housing and seat of the lawnmower had been tipped back, possibly to allow light to pass down through to where Ian was working.
The coroner said that would have also caused the weight transfer to change, contributing to it sliding backwards off the forklift tongs.
Police also noted that there was very little grip when steel was on top of steel, such as the carriage of the ride-on lawnmower and the steel tongs of the forklift.
Coroner Schmidt-McCleave made several recommendations for those working under vehicles, which included using the right jack for the job.
“A trolley jack should be used to lift a vehicle in order to place support stands beneath it,” she said.
The coroner recommended the use of a manual to identify the correct lifting point.
Vehicles needed to be parked on a hard, level surface with the handbrake applied and chocks on the wheels that had not been lifted, before the vehicle was raised.
“Ensure the vehicle is safely on the support stands before getting under the vehicle.”
Coroner Schmidt-McCleave said vehicle ramps could provide an alternative method for raising a vehicle.
“They should be used in pairs and on a hard, level surface, preferably concrete; place chocks under any wheels on the ground so that the vehicle cannot roll off the ramps.”
The coroner determined Ian’s cause of death was traumatic asphyxia caused by the 500kg mower landing on him.
Al Williams is an Open Justice reporter for the New Zealand Herald, based in Christchurch. He has worked in daily and community titles in New Zealand and overseas for the last 16 years. Most recently he was editor of the Hauraki-Coromandel Post, based in Whangamatā. He was previously deputy editor of the Cook Islands News.