Rotorua child Kendra Scanlon died after oven tipped on her, coroner rules

Police at Kendra Scanlon's home on Brookland Rd in Western Heights in April 2022. Photo / Laura Smith

A 19-month-old girl who died after an oven fell on top of her while she was unsupervised in her Rotorua home has prompted a coroner’s warning to parents as well as recommendations about free-standing ovens.

Details of the tragic death of “dearly loved” Kendra Paisley Ann Scanlon have been released in Coroner Matthew Bates’ finding released publicly on Wednesday.

Kendra died on April 28, 2022 at her Brookland Rd home after she and her 4-year-old brother were left unsupervised while the adults in the home slept.

Kendra was eventually discovered about 11am pinned under the kitchen oven, which had toppled over.

The finding said the children were covered in cooking oil, believed to have come from a pot of oil left on the stovetop. Dried noodles, which the children loved to eat, were also found on the floor.

The finding said it appeared Kendra and her brother had climbed on to the opened oven door, causing it to tip forward. Both children suffered traumatic injuries. Kendra was taken to Rotorua Hospital but doctors were unable to resuscitate her. Her brother was taken to Starship Hospital in a critical condition.

Police and Coroner Bates found it was a “tragic accident”.

How it happened

Kendra lived at home with her mother, father and three older siblings aged 5, 4 and 2.

Also staying at the house were two relatives, one who looked after the children while Kendra’s parents worked nightshift and another who was staying temporarily while working during the school holidays.

Kendra was described as an active child and was known to climb tables, chairs, pantry shelves and bunk beds.

Her father once caught her opening the oven door to get leftover pizza inside. None of the children were known to have climbed on the open oven door, the finding said.

Kendra’s father recalled she had started pushing dining chairs next to the kitchen bench so she could get food from the bench or pantry and her mother said their 4-year-old son was also good at climbing things.

The finding said the children settled for bed at about 8.30pm the night before.

Kendra and her sister went to sleep in their parents’ bed and their father later moved them to their own beds.

The younger relative arrived home at 9pm and noticed the pot of used oil on the back of the stovetop.

The next morning, the adults slept in and did not wake up at 8am as they usually would to take the children to school and daycare.

Just before 11am, the younger relative woke and realised the children were still home. She went into Kendra’s parents’ bedroom to wake them.

When Kendra’s mother got up, she noticed the hallway was messy with noodles and a powdery substance. She discovered Kendra trapped beneath the fallen oven, which was crushing her neck and torso. She was not moving.

Kendra’s mother lifted the oven off her daughter and picked her up. She was cold to touch.

Kendra’s 4-year-old brother was sitting nearby pointing towards her, covered in cooking oil and with uncooked noodles in his hand.

The finding said Kendra’s father recalled at some point Kendra’s mother asking their 4-year-old what happened and their son replied “the oven had fall” and confirmed he and Kendra had been playing on it. The son also said he tried to wake his mother earlier because of this.

The parents drove Kendra to the hospital, arriving at about 11.10am. Hospital staff tried to resuscitate her and gave her adrenaline, chest compressions and respiratory support but she did not respond. At 11.28am she was pronounced dead.

Kendra’s brother was also treated for injuries. He was transferred to Starship Hospital in critical condition but later recovered.

The police investigation

Police examined the home and the Simpson Atlas brand freestanding oven. It weighed 61kg and was not secured to the wall or floor.

Kendra weighed 11.9kg and her brother about 20kg. Police reconstructed events and concluded a 20kg weight on the edge of the open oven door would cause the oven to tip forward violently.

Police at Kendra Scanlon's home on Brookland Rd in Western Heights in April 2022. Photo / Laura Smith

There are no council regulations requiring freestanding ovens to be fastened. Operating manuals did not specify they should be fixed to a wall or other surface.

Police concluded the circumstances of Kendra’s death were not suspicious and were the result of a “tragic accident”. Coroner Bates agreed with the police’s finding.

An autopsy found Kendra died from traumatic asphyxia.

Preventing further deaths

In making recommendations to prevent further deaths from occurring again, Coroner Bates said his comments were not intended as criticism of Kendra’s family who “clearly loved her and took good care of her”.

However, he said the “dearly loved” girl’s death was a tragic reminder of the need for young children to have constant adult supervision.

“If direct supervision of young children at home is not possible, for even brief periods, and children are permitted to play around the house, all care must be taken to ensure the environment is safe. As will be appreciated, children can move quickly and quietly. Many are naturally curious and will explore or climb given the opportunity, particularly if following the example of others.”

He said Kendra’s death was a reminder of the importance of childproofing areas in the home by installing items such as oven and appliance locks and securing items that might be climbed or prone to tipping, particularly when young children were known to enjoy climbing.

He recommended local councils consider regulations around installing freestanding ovens including fastening them in place to prevent the risk of tipping when weight is placed on the open door.

Coroner Bates said he was not suggesting regulations applied retrospectively, although highlighting this issue should prompt people to investigate whether their current setup was safe.

He made a second recommendation to manufacturers of freestanding ovens to either include in user manuals or via labels placed on ovens with clear messaging that ovens might be liable to tipping when weight is placed on the open door if the oven is not fastened.

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.