EastPack probes van crash that injured RSE workers

The seasonal workers injured in Monday's crash were kiwifruit vine pruners in the Western Bay of Plenty.

The employer of kiwifruit workers injured when their van rolled has opened an internal investigation into the Bay of Plenty incident.

The van containing 10 Indonesian RSE (Recognised Seasonal Employer) workers from EastPack was involved in a single-vehicle crash near Maketū on Monday.

Six workers needed hospital treatment for moderate to serious injuries, and others had minor injuries.

Immigration New Zealand Pacific acting national manager Zoe Wyatt said the injuries included broken bones.

“Thankfully, there have been no fatalities,” she said.

Wyatt said Immigration NZ’s RSE engagement partner was working closely with the employer to ensure the injured workers received support and assistance.

EastPack is New Zealand’s largest kiwifruit post-harvest operation.

EastPack chief executive Hamish Simson told SunLive the company was carrying out an internal investigation.

“As their employer, we’ll be supporting them through their recovery process.”

EastPack chief executive Hamish Simson. Photo / NZME

The workers were employed to prune kiwifruit vines on a Bay of Plenty orchard and he described them as “very good employees”.

He said they had been in the country about five to six months on long-term RSE contracts.

He said the workers were travelling to work in a company van with a company driver when the crash happened.

Western Bay of Plenty road policing manager Senior Sergeant Wayne Hunter said police were investigating to see if charges would need to be laid.

He said the cause of the incident was still to be determined; however, it was “likely due to speed and wet road conditions”.

Western Bay of Plenty road policing manager Senior Sergeant Wayne Hunter. Photo / Alex Cairns

Hunter said the investigation would take time as police would have to speak with everyone involved, and some passengers “won’t be speaking very good English”.

The accident was on Wilson Rd North, with emergency services called about 7.40am.

Maketū fire chief Shane Gourlay said he believed slippery roads from the rain contributed to the van crashing.

“The road was closed for about one and a half hours before it was cleared.”

Hato Hone St John said four ambulances, two operations managers and one rapid response unit attended.

Ten patients were assessed, with eight of those taken to Tauranga Hospital.

Two were in a serious condition, five in moderate condition, and one in minor condition.

“The two remaining patients were assessed and treated at the scene.”

The crash happened a year after three Samoan RSE workers employed at EastPack Ōpōtiki were killed in a crash on State Highway 1 near Auckland. Three survivors in the van were injured.