NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Safety failings behind Kiwi's death

By APNZ and Herald Online staff
APNZ·
31 May, 2012 10:20 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Hayden Stockwell thinks about his wife Rebecca every day. Photo / Supplied

Hayden Stockwell thinks about his wife Rebecca every day. Photo / Supplied

KEY POINTS:

A luxury resort worker was guilty of a long list of safety failings when his boat struck and killed a Blenheim woman on honeymoon in Fiji, a coroner has found.

The woman's brain was not returned to her family, instead it was disposed of in Fiji.

Rebecca Stockwell, 26, was snorkelling with her new husband Hayden Stockwell when she was run over by a 20-ft aluminium boat in the water at the Fijian island resort of Matamanoa in 2007.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

She died from extensive brain injuries after being hit by the propeller.

Boat labourer Tomasi Natutuvuli Tovou was found guilty of manslaughter over the incident in 2009.

Hastings coroner Christopher Devonport today released findings showing Tovou, who did not have a license to operate a vessel, was travelling at speed outside a marked channel where boats were permitted.

He did not employ a "spotter" to warn him of approaching dangers and was bending down to remove a stopper when he struck Ms Stockwell, his findings said.

"Failure to employ safe boating practices resulted in Mrs Stockwell being run over by the boat and hit on the head by the boat's propeller."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Mr Devonport said a pathologist in Fiji who conducted a post-mortem examination on Mrs Stockwell had disposed of her brain before her body was transported back to New Zealand.

Dr Litia Tudravu later told New Zealand police she was embarrassed at Mrs Stockwell's brain not being returned.

Changes had been introduced to ensure better consultation with families over post-mortems and embalming procedures as a result of the case, Dr Tudravu said.

After an investigation into Mrs Stockwell's death, several measures recommended by the Fijian Ministry of Labour were introduced by the Matamanoa resort.

It brought in more staff training around dealing with such accidents, improved boating qualifications and undertaking seas safety courses, first aid training and propeller guards installed on larger engines.

After an investigation into Mrs Stockwell's death, several changes recommended by the Fijian Ministry of Labour recommended were introduced by the resort including more staff training around dealing with such accidents, improved boating qualifications and undertaking seas safety courses, first aid training and propeller guards installed on larger engines.

The newlywed and her husband arrived on the island for their honeymoon days earlier after their wedding in Blenheim.

On the morning of November 30, the couple picked up masks, goggles and fins from the resort shop to preparation to go snorkelling.

The man serving them helped fit the gear but did not tell them where around the island they should avoid snorkelling, the Coroner found.

They entered the water at 10.30am in front of their accommodation. Mr Stockwell was wearing green board shorts, fins, mask and snorkel, his wife a black bikini, green mask and snorkel.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The pair were swimming on top of the water , parallel with the beach, 10-15m from the shore, when Mrs Stockwell indicated she was going to stop to take a photo.

"I just slowly carried on swimming and then I heard a noise so I lifted my head and saw the boat. It was a drone noise, it was probably the engine but I didn't hear it until it was too late,'' Mr Stockwell is reported as saying.

The boat was coming at him from behind, travelling in the same direction as the couple were. At that moment he couldn't see his wife, and kicked out of the way of the boat, which "Missed me by less than a metre'', he said.

As the boat passed, he heard a bang, and it stopped. Then, "everything happened so fast''.

"Initially I couldn't see Becky, she had been knocked under the water and then I saw blood on top of the water and then she came to the surface face down.

"I grabbed her and lifted her head out of the water, and I started screaming for help. I noticed she was bleeding from the head. the snorkel and mask were gone.''

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Matamanoa resort did not have an oxygen mask available at the time of Mrs Stockwell's death, Mr Devonport found.

However, her injuries were so severe they would not have been survivable, he said.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

New Zealand

Family beg for news of missing teen who vanished from Akl mall

28 Jun 10:52 AM
New Zealand

Are you the lucky winner? Two bag $500,000 in Lotto draw

28 Jun 09:00 AM
Crime

Robber left path of destruction during wrong-way race to airport in stolen $82k Audi

28 Jun 06:58 AM

Kaibosh gets a clean-energy boost in the fight against food waste

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

Family beg for news of missing teen who vanished from Akl mall

Family beg for news of missing teen who vanished from Akl mall

28 Jun 10:52 AM

The teenager was last seen at the LynnMall Shopping Centre in West Auckland on Wednesday.

Are you the lucky winner? Two bag $500,000 in Lotto draw

Are you the lucky winner? Two bag $500,000 in Lotto draw

28 Jun 09:00 AM
Robber left path of destruction during wrong-way race to airport in stolen $82k Audi

Robber left path of destruction during wrong-way race to airport in stolen $82k Audi

28 Jun 06:58 AM
Council's flood response leaves resident frustrated

Council's flood response leaves resident frustrated

28 Jun 06:18 AM
Engage and explore one of the most remote places on Earth in comfort and style
sponsored

Engage and explore one of the most remote places on Earth in comfort and style

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP